“Join Nevermore Academy, the alma mater of Gomez and Morticia Addams, and home to outcasts of all kinds”, says Netflix’s newest series.
Tim Burton’s Wednesday series starring Jenna Ortega has launched a featurette and website for a fictional elite prep school called Nevermore Academy.
The Addams Family is a fictional family created by American cartoonist Charles Addams. They originally appeared in a series of single-panel cartoons that were adapted into other media, including television, film, video games, comic books, a musical and merchandising.
In 2021, Netflix announced a live-action TV series adaptation based on the character of Wednesday Addams, starring Jenna Ortega (Jane the Virgin) as the title character. It will be produced by MGM Television, with Alfred Gough and Miles Millar (both of Smallville) as showrunners and Tim Burton as series director in his first television directorial effort.
The Wednesday series centers on a 16-year-old prodigy named Wednesday who learns to harnesses her budding psychic ability to solve a serial killer case and unlock the murder mystery that involved her parents 25 years ago. Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzmán play Morticia and Gomez Addams, with Isaac Ordonez as Pugsley Addams, Victor Dorobantu as Thing, and George Burcea as Lurch.
It’s coming-of-age supernatural mystery comedy focusing on Wednesday Addams and her years as a high school student at Nevermore Academy. There’s now a website where you can apply to join (fictionally) at https://NevermoreAcademy.com
Wednesday Addams has appeared on screen several times before, but, as Ortega says: We’ve never seen her as a teenage girl…it’s funny and sweet and almost charming to hear this eight-year-old’s obsession with murder and blood…how do we establish this character and give her the same fire without letting her become something that she’s not (as a teen)?”
Wednesday is scheduled to premiere on Netflix on Wednesday, November 23, 2022, and will consist of eight episodes. Danny Elfman will provide the theme song.
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David Raiklen wrote, directed and scored his first film at age 9. He began studying keyboard and composing at age 5. He attended, then taught at UCLA, USC and CalArts. Among his teachers are John Williams and Mel Powel.
He has worked for Fox, Disney and Sprint. David has received numerous awards for his work, including the 2004 American Music Center Award. Dr. Raiklen has composed music and sound design for theater (Death and the Maiden), dance (Russian Ballet), television (Sing Me a Story), cell phone (Spacey Movie), museums (Museum of Tolerance), concert (Violin Sonata ), and film (Appalachian Trail).
His compositions have been performed at the Hollywood Bowl and the first Disney Hall. David Raiken is also host of a successful radio program, Classical Fan Club.
In the various incarnations of The Addams Family that I’ve seen, I’ve had the impression that Wednesday might well become the most powerful member of the family. With this coming out, perhaps I’m not the only person who thought that.