(Left) Andrew McCarthy in ‘Less than Zero’. Photo: 20th Century Fox. (Center) Lena Headey stars in ‘Normal’. (Right) James Lance in ‘Ted Lasso’, now streaming on Apple TV.
Preview:
Lena Headey, Andrew McCarthy & James Lance have been cast in ‘Wednesday’.
The third season of the Netflix hit is shooting now.
While there is no official plotline out there yet, the second season ended with Wednesday (Jenna Ortega) heading off with her Uncle Fester (Fred Armisen) to rescue roommate and friend Enid (Emma Myers) from being trapped as an alpha werewolf.
When will ‘Wednesday’ Season 3 hit Netflix?
You’d need Wednesday’s psychic abilities to guess that at this point, but we can presume that it’ll either hit later this year or (more likely) early in 2027.
(Left) Donald Glover attends the 74th Annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on January 8, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California. Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images. (Right) Yoshi in Nintendo and Illumination’s ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic.
Preview:
Donald Glover is voicing Yoshi in ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.’
Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy and Charlie Day all return to their roles.
The new movie lands on April 1.
Having seen big box office success with 2023’s ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie,’ studio Universal and animation powerhouse Illumination have naturally come up with a sequel, this one drawing from the ‘Super Mario Galaxy’ game.
And at a recent Nintendo event, Illumination boss Chris Meledandri announced that ‘Atlanta’ star Donald Glover would be voicing dino favorite sidekick Yoshi in the movie.
What’s the story of ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’?
(L to R) Luigi, Yoshi, Mario and Toad in Nintendo and Illumination’s ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic.
After defeating Bowser (Jack Black) in the original movie, Mario (Chris Pratt), Luigi (Charlie Day) and Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) are back for another adventure and must face off against the evil Koopa King and his son, Bowser Jr. (Benny Safdie).
They’re also transported to outer space and explore various planets, like a fiery volcano world, an underwater planet and a techno-land with neon, gravity-defying obstacles. In the new trailer, the Mushroom Kingdom heroes team up with Rosalina (Brie Larson) and Yoshi (Glover), the egg-laying dinosaur (who’s normally silent except for the occasional “Yoshi!”).
When will ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ be on screens?
‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ lands in theaters on April 1.
L to R: Yoshi, Baby Luigi, Toad and Baby Mario in Nintendo and Illumination’s THE SUPER MARIO GALAXY MOVIE, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic.
Other Movies Similar to ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie:’
The first part of ‘Wednesday’s second season left things on a cliffhanger with our heroine injured after her latest encounter with rampant “Hyde” creature Tyler Galpin (Hunter Doohan). It had a lot to live up to, and while the new batch of episodes certainly have their high points, there is a big issue at its heart.
While the producers, including showrunners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar could be forgiven for sticking to what they know, the endless use of the Hyde creature is a problem as things get repetitive. Also, the first few episodes feel like the tail end of Part One, before a new story randomly takes over, and the two plots fit somewhat uneasily.
The show remains as stylish and fun as ever, but the Hyde creatures are a weak spot –– some effects are decent, others are so cartoony as to truly stand out like a sore thumb.
As expected, Jenna Ortega remains the MVP of the show, her deadpan delivery as on point as always.
But she shares the spotlight with Emma Myers, who shines in particular when she’s swapping bodies with Ortega’s character for a chunk of an episode. The two performers are a delight playing each other, and it’s easily the most fun the season has.
Elsewhere, the Addams clan are used decently, though poor Luis Guzmán still gets the short end of the stick as Gomez. Gwendoline Christie gets to have more fun playing Principal Weems as a spirit guide than she ever truly did in the first season.
And while Lady Gaga’s cameo is fun in the moment, she’s more plot device than character.
Though the second part of the season doesn’t quite live up to the first (those confused storytelling approaches didn’t help), there is still entertainment to be derived from the watching Ortega do her thing.
The producers did at least find a way to weave (most of) the other Addams family members into the story, and the return of Gwendoline Christie’s Weems was a welcome, useful one.
‘Wednesday’ Season 2 Part 2 receives 75 out of 100.
‘Wednesday’ Season 2 Part 1 receives 8 out of 10 stars.
Arriving on Netflix on August 5th is the first part of ‘Wednesday’ Season 2, (four episodes, followed by a further four making up Part 2 on September 3rd).
If all the reporting on it and promotion for the show wasn’t enough to convince you, ‘Wednesday’s return for a second season on Netflix proves that it’s a giant sensation from the off, since it sports a tailored introductory sting featuring everyone’s favorite disembodied hand, Thing, interacting with the steamer’s logo.
‘Wednesday’, though, ultimately has a lot more than the sprawling fanbase to live up to –– it must deliver what audiences enjoyed about the first season while expanding the world and finding some new mysteries for our morbid heroine to explore.
On the evidence of the first part of the new season (split, as is the streamer’s custom, into two chunks premiering in this case roughly a month apart), ‘Wednesday’s child is still full of woe –– and mightily entertaining to boot.
Returning showrunners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar know what makes ‘Wednesday’ tick: plenty of Ortega’s deadpan delivery, a deadly mystery enveloping her and her classmates, plenty for animated body part Thing to handle and some brightness to balance the dour central figure in the form of Emma Myers’ peppy werewolf roommate Enid.
While the element of surprise is perhaps lacking this time, the focus is instead on easing us back into Nevermore Academy, with this year bringing the added notion of having Wednesday’s family –– that would be Morticia, Gomez, Pugsley and looming, groaning manservant Lurch (Joonas Suotamo) –– around on campus more than she would really prefer.
The mystery is another beguiling one, and several of the new characters fit seamlessly into the story.
Still, while the addition of the extended Addams family does draw a little too much focus, at least the writing team keeps the balance most satisfying, Gomez and Pugsley used sparingly while the fractured dynamic between Morticia and her daughter is pushed to the fore.
On the directing front, Tim Burton is back, splitting episodes with Paco Cabezas, offers the requisite style and quirk we’ve come to expect from Wednesday. While not every effect is, er, effective (the Hyde remains some very plasticky CG work), others are still excellent (Thing in particular).
And a move to Ireland for the new season hasn’t impacted the show’s gothic charms, with an episode set at a nearby camp bringing up memories of Wednesday’s memorable time at summer camp in 1993 movie ‘Addams Family Values’.
With Ortega front and center as always, Wednesday herself remains a wonderful creation, all dark moods, gloomy zingers and a wealth of skills. This is a near-perfect blend of actor and role, and Wednesday’s journey this season allows her to deepen without changing too much.
Emma Myers also remains a delight as Enid, the perky werewolf roommate with the love of rainbow colors and, this year, a burgeoning love life. She balances well with Ortega and the two make a solid double act.
The returning members of the Addams clan (now regular cast members) are more of a mixed bag. Catherine Zeta-Jones is ever slinky and superb as Morticia, here handed her own deeper emotional throughline with different generational issues and a more active role in present-day Nevermore.
Luis Guzmán is similarly good as Gomez, though he has less to do (but does it all well). Isaac Ordonez is less convincing as Pugsley, but does at least have a fun plotline –– which also introduces some truly Burton-tastic animation for its backstory.
Previously unseen is Grandmama Hester Frump, Morticia’s mother, brought to vibrant, emotionally distant life by UK sitcom and acting legend Joanna Lumley. She fits smoothly into the wider ensemble.
Of the new recruits, Steve Buscemi makes for an appealing new principal, the goofy Barry Dort, a tireless campaigner for outcasts’ right who also has a hidden agenda, while Billie Piper works well as Isadora Capri, the new music teacher at the school.
There’s a fun, small supporting role for Christopher Lloyd (who played Uncle Fester in the live-action ‘Addams’ movies) and Thandiwe Newton provides mystery and power as the head of a nearby asylum which will become key to the plot in this early chunk of the season.
If it’s tough to follow a hit, ‘Wednesday’s second season so far shows little sign of the strain, bringing back what fans like about the show while layering in new mysteries and some worthwhile fresh faces.
Now it’s up the second batch of episodes to stick the landing…
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What’s the story of ‘Wednesday’ Season 2?
Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega), returns to prowl the Gothic halls of Nevermore Academy, where fresh foes and woes await.
This season, Wednesday must navigate family, friends and old adversaries, propelling her into another year of delightfully dark and kooky mayhem.
Armed with her signature razor-sharp wit and deadpan charm, Wednesday is also plunged into a new bone-chilling supernatural mystery.
In ‘Guns Up,’ Luis Guzman plays Ignatius, the right hand man of a mob boss and friend to Ray Hayes (Kevin James), a former cop who works as an enforcer for the organization and is looking to get out.
Guzman’s ability to move effortlessly from the serious to the comedic has landed him roles in dozens of films and TV shows, and he’s worked with directors like Steven Soderbergh and Paul Thomas Anderson multiple times. In addition to ‘Guns Up’ and the recent thriller ‘Havoc,’ Guzman will return this fall in Season 2 of the blockbuster Netflix series ‘Wednesday’ as Gomez, patriarch of the Addams family and father to the title character (Jenna Ortega).
Moviefone had the pleasure of speaking exclusively with this versatile actor about getting the role in ‘Guns Up,’ working with Kevin James and Christina Ricci, and what we can expect next from ‘Wednesday.’
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.
(L to R) Kevin James, Christina Ricci and Luis Guzmán in ‘Guns Up’. Photo: Vertical.
Moviefone: Let’s start with ‘Guns Up.’ What struck you about this script and character?
Luis Guzmán: Well, it was funny. They called me on a Monday. They offered me the part on Monday and they said, “Can you fly in tomorrow to start shooting Wednesday?” I go, “Okay, guys, maybe it’d be a good idea that I read the script because you offered me the part. I have not read the script.” So I got the script later that day. I read it that night. I thought it was really cool and different. I liked the whole genre of action/comedy and the fact that I was going to have an opportunity to work with Kevin James and Christina Ricci and to do a scene with Melissa Leo. I was like, “Oh, wow, this is great.” But it also a lot also had to do with the writer/director, Edward Drake. I just dug his vibe, his flow. That got me really interested. I dug the character because initially in the beginning, there’s a mystery to this guy. Is he a bad guy? Because he seems like a bad guy. But as the movie progresses it’s like, oh, okay, it’s shifting. It’s shifting…So yeah, that kind of drew me in.
MF: Ignatius seems like he’s there to facilitate whoever’s in charge at the moment, but at the same time it feels like he’s also got the big picture in mind.
LG: Absolutely. So like I said, for me in that sense, it was quite fun. It was a good shoot. It was a really good crew of people, considering all the action that was going on, the shooting and all that stuff. Nobody got hurt. We had great, great stunt coordinators on the show who kept everybody safe. For me that made it really cool. I just really dug how organic it was because I don’t like to be predictable, and this film, again, just gave me the opportunity to just do my thing and have fun.
Kevin James in ‘Guns Up’. Photo: Vertical.
MF: Kevin is mainly known for comedy. Is it interesting to play opposite a guy like him and watch him do something that he’s not known for, and also to play off that yourself and see how he’s trying to stretch himself?
LG: See, I never think about those things because then again, for me, it becomes a little predictable. I, personally, like to be organic. Even though I know Kevin is maybe a comedic actor, I’m not thinking about him as a comedic actor. I’m thinking about him in that moment, in that role, and what’s going on, what’s happening, what are we doing?
MF: What’s the first thing you do when you get to set on the first day? How do you prepare?
LG: I just show up. For me, always, the first day is the hardest day because you are just trying to find the vibe. Because again, I always find that on my first day, I’m discovering things. Once I start working and whoever else I’m working with, and I get the flow back from them, then that really triggers me into what I’m going to do, how I’m going to approach all this stuff. So that’s how basically it works for me.
(L to R) Christina Ricci and Kevin James in ‘Guns Up’. Photo: Vertical.
MF: Any particular days on this shoot that you remember as being especially challenging, or when something funny and unexpected happened?
LG: Well, my first night of shooting actually, we shot underneath the Bayonne Bridge. We’re on the water, and it’s night, and [it was] just beautiful. You saw the Manhattan skyline in the background and it was just a beautiful shot. You appreciate that because there’s a certain artistry to that. Also, it was dark. I’m making this whole speech to all these bad guys, wannabes, and stuff like that, and I’m owning it. I’m owning that moment. But like I said, it was just such a beautiful setting.
MF: You are an actor who is constantly working. Is it a satisfying feeling for you to have such a long career and be as busy as you are?
LG: Oh, man, it is 100% satisfying. It kind of blows me away because I always tell my friends and family, it’s nice to be wanted, but it’s also the fact that I have established myself and I get phone calls to do this and to do that. I mean, Jesus Christ, man, just for me right now, I’m just playing this iconic role of Gomez on ‘Wednesday.’ The great John Astin did it, the wonderful Raul Julia did it. Here I am doing it. I’m just honored and blown away. Listen, I’ve been doing this for a long time. I pinch myself every day. I’m like, wow. So again, it’s nice to be wanted but, and I’ve said this many times, I’ll say it again. I guess the biggest asset that I have about myself is being humble, and that’s why I keep getting called back to do stuff. I show up not only to be an artist, but to complement other artists, whether they’re a director, actors, producers, makeup, hair, wardrobe. It’s all a beautiful artistic collaboration and I’m just honored to be a part of all that.
Luis Guzmán on the set of ‘Wednesday’ season 1. Photo: Netflix.
MF: You and Christina didn’t get to interact on Season 1 of ‘Wednesday,’ but was it fun to work with her on ‘Guns Up’ and also maybe talk about that connection?
LG: Well, it was great working with her on ‘Guns Up.’ I think we just mentioned [‘Wednesday’] on the first day. But I got to tell you, man, Christina was so laser-focused on this. I love her character. I love the reveal of her character. She was really spot on, 100% committed to what she was doing. So for me, again, it was fun working with her.
MF: You mentioned John Astin and Raul Julia playing the part of Gomez. What do you do to make the role your own?
LG: Well, my approach is quite simple. I am a loving husband, a loving father. I love my family. Being an outcast is something that I’m proud of. I use the word organic a lot, but that’s how I approach it. Listen, you get to work with Jenna Ortega, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Isaac Ordenez who plays my son, and we really click so well together. It’s a beautiful family. So for me, like I said, because you see how Raul and Anjelica Huston did their roles, you saw how John Astin did his role, and it’s just a continuation of love.
(L to R) Luis Guzmán and Isaac Ordonez in season 1 of ‘Wednesday’. Photo: Netflix.
MF: What can we expect in Season 2 of ‘Wednesday’?
LG: They blew the lid off it. The first season was pretty spectacular. I told the writers, “How are you guys going to outdo this?” Believe me, they went beyond it. I was blown away. Audiences are going to be so, so happy to see the show come back. Tim Burton, Alfred Gough and Miles Millar and their team of writers really outdid themselves. Just the best cast, the best crew. It’s a real collaboration of artists and it’s beautiful.
MF: Finally, you’ve worked multiple times with great directors — Steven Soderbergh, Paul Thomas Anderson, Brian De Palma. Do you see a similarity between the way they work or the vision that they have, and do you see that in some of the newer directors that you work with these days?
LG: I think they’re all different because they approach their artistry differently. All their visions are different. What they have in common is that they’re all artists, but they all do their thing differently and the outcome is wonderful.
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What is the plot of ‘Guns Up’?
When a job goes horribly wrong, an ex-cop and family man who moonlights as a mob henchman has one night to get his family out of the city.
The show, starring ‘Scream’s Jenna Ortega, ranks as the most-watched English language show that the streaming service has ever released and was nominated for 12 Emmys, winning four.
So naturally, fans have been clamoring for any word of when it might be back on our screens. And while there is still no properly confirmed date (see below), we do at least know that the second season exists, albeit in raw form as Netflix has marked the end of production on the latest batch of episodes by posting a suitably spooky shot of Ortega.
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She’s posing, in true Wednesday form, in what appears to be a graveyard, with a gothic gate and two robed statues carrying lanterns behind her. What were you expecting? Rainbows and kittens? Storm clouds and a pet cemetery are more her style.
While this is the first official picture from the new season, we have had a previous first look behind-the-scenes clip released as part of Netflix’s Geeked Week celebrations…
And the biggest recent news for the new season is the announcement that Lady Gaga will be appearing in a relatively small role.
What has happened with ‘Wednesday’ Season behind the scenes?
Cast and crew of Netflix’s ‘Wednesday’. Photo: Netflix.
Given the sheer level of excitement around the first season (Netflix took the rare step of releasing actual figures since it had something to crow about: ‘Wednesday’ notched up most hours viewed in a week with 341.2 million hours, tied the record with fellow genre powerhouse ‘Stranger Things’ fourth season for the most viewed show in 83 countries and stands as one of only three titles to cross 1 billion hours viewed on the service within one month, along with ‘Squid Game‘/ and the aforementioned ‘Stranger Things.’
That prompted the company to spawn all manner of merchandising and real-world “experiences” and naturally to commission a second season.
The production for Season 2 shifted (for budget and scheduling reasons) from Romania to Ireland, and it had to accommodate a few challenges, including a delayed start due to star Ortega’s schedule on Tim Burton’s ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.’
It’s worth noting that Burton is also involved in ‘Wednesday’ as an executive producer as well as directing several episodes.
Alfred Gough and Miles Millar serve as the series’ showrunners, keeping things on track through the new season.
Who else will appear in ‘Wednesday’ Season 2?
(L to R) Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia Addams, Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams, Luis Guzmán as Gomez Addams, and Isaac Ordonez as Pugsley Addams in Netflix’s ‘Wednesday.’
The first season told the tale of Wednesday’s enrollment at the Nevermore Academy, where she discovers she has inherited her mother’s psychic abilities, allowing her to solve a local murder mystery.
Season 2 will pick up the threads of that, while plunging her into a new mystery, likely with fresh creatures to deal with. The expanded roles for her family members means we can expect more of the Addams clan this time around.
And we predict potential dancing, given the viral TikTok “Wednesday dance” that spread across social media in 2022 following the release of Season 1.
Will Netflix choose to go all ‘Stranger Things’/‘Cobra Kai’ and spread the new episodes out across different chunks? That remains to be seen, but you just know they’ve considered it.
When will ‘Wednesday’ Season 2 land on Netflix?
The streaming service has yet to confirm a formal date, but the show is confirmed to return in 2025.
Cast and crew of Netflix’s ‘Wednesday’. Photo: Netflix.
Preview:
‘Wednesday’ is now in production on Season 2.
Christopher Lloyd and Billie Piper are among the new cast additions.
The likes of Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzman are now series regulars.
With such a big reaction to ‘Addams Family’ spin-off dramedy ‘Wednesday’s first season, you can imagine Netflix’s frustration on not being able to strike while the pop cultural iron is at its hottest, with the writers and actors’ strikes putting paid to a potential 2023 shoot.
But, following a location switch to Ireland, the show has finally gotten back into the swing of things, and cameras are now rolling on Season 2, as a fun video featuring disembodied hand Thing delivering scripts reveals…
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And the start of production is not the only piece of news to emerge from the show today, as, following on from word of Steve Buscemi joining the cast, a slew of actor announcements was revealed by the streaming service.
And then we have the new guest stars, including the exciting likes of Christopher Lloyd, who has his own ‘Addams Family’ connection, having played Uncle Fester in the two ‘Addams’ movies. But with Fred Armisen already established as Fester in ‘Wednesday’, we’ll have to wait and see who he’s playing.
Here’s what ‘Wednesday’ show-runners Al Gough and Miles Millar said about the new cast:
“We are thrilled that the entire Addams family will be enrolling in Nevermore Academy this season along with a dream cast of icons and new faces.”
Tim Burton will be back as the main director for the new season alongside Paco Cabezas and Angela Robins.
When will ‘Wednesday’ Season 2 be on Netflix?
The streaming service has yet to reveal when the show will return to its servers, but we’re guessing as soon as (in)humanely possible, given that ‘Wednesday’ is the Most Popular English TV series on Netflix with 252.10 Million Season 1 views.
Steve Buscemi in ‘Boardwalk Empire’. Photo: HBO Entertainment.
Preview:
‘Wednesday’ Season 2 will see Steve Buscemi join the ensemble.
He’ll appear alongside star Jenna Ortega.
The Netflix series has been a huge hit for the streaming service.
Given that the first season was a gigantic hit for Netflix, the streaming service has naturally been eager to have work start on the second so as to capitalize on its pop culture consciousness awareness (translation: the series broke the record for hours viewed on the service and has been massive on TikTok).
Yet it was stymied by the writers’ and actors’ strike last year, not to mention the increasingly busy schedule of star Jenna Ortega, who plays the title character, the eldest child of the Addams family.
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Now, though, with production due to be underway any day now (with a location switch from the first season’s Romania to Ireland), news is finally starting to emerge, as Variety reports that Steve Buscemi is joining the cast.
Who is Steve Buscemi playing in ‘Wednesday’ Season 2?
Steve Buscemi in 1996’s ‘Fargo’. Photo: Gramercy Pictures.
Official word on Buscemi’s character is naturally being kept in a locked dungeon for now, but according to Variety’s sources, he’s the new principal of Nevermore Academy, where Wednesday studies (and solves mysteries. And gets wrapped up in love triangles, much to her surprise and disgust).
It’s not a job to be taken lightly –– the previous incumbent (Gwendoline Christie’s Larissa Weems) died by poison needle.
Who else is in ‘Wednesday? Season 2?
(L to R) Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia Addams, Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams, Luis Guzmán as Gomez Addams, and Isaac Ordonez as Pugsley Addams in Netflix’s ‘Wednesday.’
Confirmed as returning so far are Ortega, Hunter Doohan (Tyler Galpin), Emma Myers (Enid Sinclair), and Joy Sunday (Bianca Barclay), who all stopped by last year’s big Netflix fan event to tease information on the new season.
We’re apparently to expect another member of the Addams family showing up (so far the show has seen Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia, Luis Guzmán as Gomez, Isaac Ordonez as Pugsley and Fred Armisen as Uncle Fester), though details have yet to be released.
“We can’t wait to dive headfirst into another season and explore the kooky, spooky world of Nevermore… We just need to make sure Wednesday hasn’t emptied the pool first.”
Director Tim Burton (who executive produces and handled several episodes of Season 1) is expected to return for this one.
When will ‘Wednesday’ Season 2 be on Netflix?
Netflix has yet to confirm a date for the second season, but with filming only starting now and a likely effects-heavy post-production schedule, we can’t imagine it hitting screens much before the end of this year.
Sandler is no stranger to recruiting his friends to co-star in his movies, boasting a revolving ensemble of buddies. But for his latest Netflix offering, he switches to feature more of his own family. But before you reach for the “Nepo Baby” klaxon, the result is something that actually works well
Directed by Sammi Cohen (who also handled life and love with last year’s ‘Crush’) and adapted from Fiona Rosenbloom’s book by ‘Work It’ writer Alison Peck, ‘You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah’ might not trouble the upper echelons of classic teen comedy, but still has entertainment value as a heartfelt exploration of life as a 13-year-old Jewish girl, with all the expectations, hopes and dreams that come with that.
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What’s the story of ‘You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah’?
As mentioned, this is not an Adam Sandler-starring film. He’s certainly there, stealing the occasional scene as Danny, the loving and occasionally confused father to Stacy and Ronnie (played by real-life daughters Sunny and Sadie). Sandler gets a few choice lines but chooses to let Suny in particular drive the narrative.
And on the whole, she does a fine job, graduating from quick appearances in her father’s movies to leading status, carrying the story and bringing Stacy to life in believably teen fashion. Her dynamic with Lorraine as Lydia works well –– erring on the comedy side but never completely sliding into overt wackiness. The pair makes for an appealing couple of leads, occasionally histrionic in true teen fashion, but also clicking as friends on screen.
She has a lot to handle in the film, from chunks of the Torah (young Jewish people learn chunks of Hebrew to read at their Bat or Bar Mitzvah ceremony) to a scene in which she leaps from a cliff into a lake on a dare from schoolmates, only for a bloodstained period pad to ruin her moment of triumph.
Likewise, Sadie Sandler offers up the slightly more mature energy of highschooler Ronnie, a laidback but loyal older sister who spends most of her time hanging out with best pal Zaara (Zaara Kuttemperoor), watching movies (on an iPhone! Blasphemy!) and making low-key plans (“how is that not weird?” remarks Danny when Ronnie reveals her schedule for the day involves eating then taking a nap outside). The true-life family connection comes into play in the chemistry between Sandler and the girls, with several moments feeling like the three just drawing from their own experiences.
And there some great sequences, such as a shouted argument in the background of a scene between Danny and Stacy that touches on Hitler and a mojito bar.
Around them is a solid supporting cast, including Menzel as Stacy and Ronnie’s mother, (mostly) gracefully indulging her daughters and husband, Sandler’s wife Jackie as Lydia’s mother and the more straightforwardly comic likes of Sarah Sherman as down-with-the-kids Rabbi Rebecca and Ido Mosseri as DJ Schmuley, the tune-spinning whizz every kids wants at their party.
Are there problems with ‘You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah’?
The few issues that do crop up with the movie are largely minor and don’t ruin the fun. Hoffman as Goldfarb falls into the cliched trap of the hot boy who drives a wedge between our two leading ladies, and his role is your standard pretty boy sports jock introduced in slow motion who only gets briefly explored (his dutiful visits to his grandmother provide Stacy with way into breaking up his relationship with Lydia).
Certain moments are played completely for laughs, somewhat breaking the realistic feel of the story (though seeing DJ Schmuley’s car issues is certainly good for a chuckle). And there is one plot moment revolving around a video that feels like it would be solved in real life by the subject watching it before it reaches their Bat Mitzvah ceremony.
For what could be seen as a pure vanity project (or a chance for Sandler to find cheap labor from among his own clan), ‘You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah’ is better than it has any right to be. The Sandler faithful may not embrace it the way they have his other Netflix efforts, but it feels like the comedy star looking to expand his brand along the lines of ‘Murder Mystery’.
It’s certainly a little sillier and lighter than the likes of ‘The Edge of Seventeen’, but less rude than some other examples of the genre, so it’ll work for a family movie night, parents no doubt nodding along at the portrayal of teen/adult (or “normal”/”old” people from the other side of the equation) relationships. This is further evidence also that going specific with certain aspects of life makes for a universal story that most people can identify with.
‘You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah’ receives 7.5 out of 10 stars.
That gives Prime Video streaming service the rights to show pretty much everything that MGM has produced, and since that includes Addams Family content (the recent animated movies, for example were produced by MGM), it was speculated that ‘Wednesday’ could follow.
But, as Indiewire is now pointing out, the deal for ‘Wednesday’ was struck some time before the sale of MGM was approved, so it’s more than likely that Netflix will be holding on to the show for the foreseeable future, especially since it continues to be one of its most-watched series.
Plus, there’s a mention that Amazon has been willing to explore hosting content that isn’t exclusive to Prime Video, which means that ‘Wednesday’ could continue to find a home on Netflix’s servers for years to come, even if it does one day pack its dark-colored bags and make the move to Prime in later years.
The series, which stars Jenna Ortega as the daughter of Gomez (Luis Guzman) and Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones), sees Wednesday headed to Nevermore Academy after being expelled from more regular schools because of her behavior.
There, despite still feeling like an outsider, she’s actually able to make connections with fellow students (on both the friendship and unlikely romantic front), while also confronting a supernatural mystery and her own burgeoning psychic powers.
It has since become a huge hit for the streaming service, its second week drawing 5.3 billion views and topping the Nielsen US streaming chart. It has also generated plenty of viral content, especially Tik Toks recreating the character’s dance moves.
While Netflix has yet to renew the show, there are reports that creators/show-runners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar are already scouting locations, with plans in place for Season 2. And it’s not like the streaming service has a history of cancelling popular series it talks up and then abandons. Though the creators of ‘1899’ might have something to say about that. And ‘The Bastard Son and the Devil Himself’. And ‘Warrior Nun’. And…
Look, while Netflix has been winning few friends among creators for clearing the decks of shows it considers unsuccessful despite big fan campaigns to save them, ‘Wednesday’ is in a whole other league. It’s a genuine sensation, up there with the likes of ‘Stranger Things’ for the company. So don’t go worrying that Wednesday’s child will leave you full of woe and leave its streaming home for now.
UPDATE: The streaming service has now officially renewed the show, including a statement from creators Gough and Millar: “It’s been incredible to create a show that has connected with people across the world. Thrilled to continue Wednesday’s tortuous journey into season two. We can’t wait to dive headfirst into another season and explore the kooky spooky world of Nevermore. Just need to make sure Wednesday hasn’t emptied the pool first.”
