Rejected Disney Star Officially Cut From Netflix's 'Wednesday'

One actress has had a slew of bad luck, after being rejected from not only Disney to reprise her iconic role, but also, to have film a majority of her scenes in Netflix’s highly successful Wednesday, only to have everything she did cut from the show.

Netflix’s Wednesday is one of the hottest shows on the platform at the moment.

Wednesday has claimed the title of the most-watched series of all time, accumulating an impressive 1,718,800,000 hours of viewership, equivalent to 252,100,000 completed views. This achievement surpasses the previous record holder, Stranger Things season 4.

Crafted by Al Gough and Miles Millar, Wednesday stands out as Tim Burton’s first venture into live-action television, marking his debut as a TV director. The eight-part comedy-drama series offers a fresh perspective on the iconic character from The Addams Family.

Jenna Ortega, known for her role in Scream, YOU, Insidious, Stuck in the Middle, X, and more, takes on the title role of Wednesday, with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzmán portraying her famous parents, Gomez and Morticia Addams. The star-studded cast also includes Gwendoline Christie, Riki Lindhome, Jamie McShane, Hunter Doohan, Percy Hynes White, Emma Myers, Joy Sunday, Georgie Farmer, Naomi J. Ogawa, Christina Ricci, and Moosa Mostafa.

The series follows Wednesday Addams, who gets expelled from her school for an act of revenge against bullies. Gomez Addams and Morticia Addams then enrol her in Nevermore Academy, a private school for monstrous outcasts in Jericho, Vermont.

Wednesday’s popularity soared, breaking Netflix records with 341.23 million hours viewed in its first week. Jenna Ortega’s performance not only made Wednesday a hit but also established her as a household name. Directed by Tim Burton, the series is poised to become a long-term Netflix contender, potentially filling the void left by the conclusion of Stranger Things after its fifth season.

The Stranger Things franchise follows the story of Eleven, Mike Wheeler, Will Byers, Dustin Henderson, Max Mayfield, Nancy Wheeler, Steve Harrington, Jim Hopper and more in their experiences facing the Upside Down, the Demogorgon, and Vecna has been territorial on Netflix. That being said, while the series has smashed records, it is set to end with season five.

To state that Wednesday is a replacement of the show means that Netflix will likely expect Wednesday to carry out for multiple seasons, with its success only hitting a starting point, with the intent to climb to greater heights.

As of late, Wednesday has been hitting many headlines, especially with the strike having come to an end.

Filming for season two will resume next year in Ireland, as right now, Tim Burton and Jenna Ortega are filming for Beetlejuice 2. While this is good news, we also recently heard that Percy Hynes White, who plays Xavier Thorpe in the show was written out following allegations that the actor was over-serving to guests at a party. While the allegations are not confirmed in any way, Netflix made the choice to remove Percy entirely.

Considering how much of a role his character was playing alongside Wednesday, with their chemistry sparking for a long-term love relationship that was certainly set to burn over the seasons of the show, this change certainly altered the storyline. 

On top of that, we recently shared that Thora Birch also was cut from the show.

Thora Birch left the show on her own accord after filming nearly all of her scenes as the “dorm mother” to Wednesday, due to a family emergency. 

A representative for MGM, who produces the series, said, “Thora has returned to the States to attend to a personal matter and will not be returning to the production.”

Then, it was revealed there were ulterior motives to Birch’s departure. 

As we reported, “It turns out, according to Birch, that her decision stemmed from creative decisions.”

Birch said, “That became such a fluid, moving situation artistically, creatively from episode to episode. I had filmed a certain amount and there were some questions about how much more to go with that character and there were just some changes and adjustments made. It didn’t work out that I would be able to go back, so they are finding their own solutions.”

While most of Birch’s scenes were shot, Netflix not only decided to not include her in the show, but also, cut her role entirely.

This was not the only role that Birch was cut from.

Thora Birch starred in the Disney classic Hocus Pocus alongside the Sanderson Sisters (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy). Birch played the iconic role of Dani Dennison, but in the new Hocus Pocus 2, she was no where to be found.

According to the publication Ticker, the decision was made by Thora:

“Thora Birch’s decision not to return for “Hocus Pocus 2” may have disappointed fans, but it is essential to respect her choices as an actress. While her absence will undoubtedly be felt, the sequel still holds promise with the return of beloved cast members and the introduction of new elements. As fans eagerly await the release of “Hocus Pocus 2,” they can only hope that the film will capture the magic and charm of the original, even without Thora Birch’s presence.”

That being said, as a lot of the original cast was not included in this new storyline, it seems unlikely that Disney would have wanted to include Thora, and no one else.

Regardless, in a short amount of time, Thora was written out of The Walking Dead, was rejected from Hocus Pocus, and was then cut from Wednesday, leaving the actress with a bleak future in terms of upcoming releases. A third Hocus Pocus film is in the works, but Birch is not currently in talks to star in that film either.

Would you like to see Thora Birch return to Hocus Pocus?