Gwendoline Christie was looking for “the opportunity to transform” through Larissa Weems. Nevermore Academy’s principal on Netflix’s Wednesday, Weems is dedicated to her students and maintaining the school’s reputation. Her relationship with the Addams family dates back to her childhood when she and Morticia were roommates at the Academy. In a new interview with WWD, Christie discusses developing her character and working with director Tim Burton.
Burton asked to meet with Christie for the series, and once she was cast, Christie was given the “privilege” to bring Weems to life as she best saw fit. The actress looked to heroines from Hitchcock films for inspiration.
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According to Christie, working with Burton was something she had certainly hoped for, so it came as a shock when she learned he wanted to speak with her about collaborating. Christie says she “stopped and went silent,” so imagine her elation when Burton shared he was a fan of her work. Christie became well-known for her portrayal of the loyal warrior Brienne of Tarth on Games of Thrones, and earlier in her career, she appeared in the Stars Wars franchise as Phasma. This year, Christie appeared on Netflix’s The Sandman, an adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s cult favorite comic book series, where she played Lucifer Morningstar.
“What I saw was this woman that was always used to being in second place, always in the shadow of Morticia. And so I thought about a woman in that position, a young woman in that position, what would I think? What would I do? I would self-create. And how would I do that? I would look to the magical portal of the cinema and think about another dimension, think about a cinematic dimension, because that’s one of our real and genuine portals on our Earth, is the cinema,” Christie told WWD. “I really wanted the opportunity to transform, I really did. And nobody would ever have cast me in that role. As an actor, I always want to play something far away from myself.”
Up next, Christie will star in season two of Ben Stiller’s Severance, joining new cast members Bob Balaban, Robby Benson, Stefano Carannante, John Noble, Olafur Darri Olafsson, Alia Shawkat, and Merritt Wever.
Wednesday’s Future Remains Unknown
Netflix
Since its release less than a month ago, Wednesday has been viewed over 1 billion hours (the streamer’s third series to reach that accomplishment). Like the many that have fallen in love with Burton’s Wednesday, Christie knows the series, and its cast and crew, are special. About the series’ growing success, Christie told WWD:
Despite its quickly expanding fanbase, a renewal for season two of the series has yet to be announced. Recently, Netflix’s head of US and Canada scripted series Peter Friedlander discussed Wednesday’s future. While Friedlander was unable to confirm that the series would return, he did say that he felt “optimistic,” and called the series’ reception a “cultural phenomenon.”
“It’s just inconceivable. I think the loveliest thing about it is that it seems to have made so many people happy. Such a wide range of different age groups are watching it and different people are watching it together. And it’s a beautiful thing. This magnitude of response is totally unexpected, and I just feel full of gratitude to everybody involved that works so hard and to everybody for watching and enjoying it. I really do. It’s very special.”
Wednesday stars Jenna Ortega and is available to stream on Netflix.
