Wednesday Season 2: Cast Expands with Billie Piper and Lady Gaga

Netflix has given fans their first look at Billie Piper’s new role in the upcoming second season of Wednesday, the gothic comedy series starring Jenna Ortega. The 42-year-old Piper is set to join the cast as Isadora Capri, the highly intelligent and mysterious head of music at Nevermore Academy.

Best known for playing Brona Croft/The Bride of Frankenstein in Penny Dreadful, the English actress has a long history with gothic and supernatural roles. A former child prodigy, Isadora Capri has a keen interest in Wednesday Addams’ musical prowess. She also mentors Enid Sinclair (Emma Myers), a werewolf student at Nevermore.

The first stills of Piper in costume for the series were released by Netflix as they made big announcements surrounding the future of the record-breaking show. Wednesday first arrived on the streaming service in November 2022 and quickly became a global hit. Garnering 252 million viewers across the world, it became Netflix’s biggest English-language series of all time. Due to its success, the show was renewed in January 2023 for a second season, which is now confirmed to be released in August this year.

Wednesday sees Wednesday Addams, played by 22-year-old Jenna Ortega, starting her first day at Nevermore Academy, a school for supernatural misfits. Following the series’ familiar horror-comedy route, Wednesday mixes the teen genre with body horror and the tragicomic tropes of the Addams Family. The show quickly took off, racking up Emmy nominations and a loyal fanbase.

Wednesday Season 3 Is Officially Coming

In addition to the new addition of Billie Piper’s character, Netflix revealed even more information about Wednesday‘s future. The show has been officially renewed for a third season and, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter, a spin-off series is also in discussion.

Details on the new project remain under wraps, but when asked about it, co-creator Alfred Gough teased, “It’s something we’re noodling; there are other characters we can look at.”

Fans of the series were ecstatic with the announcement on social media. Catherine Zeta-Jones, who stars as Morticia Addams, even confirmed the renewal herself in an Instagram post: “When Wednesday comes, a better day. Wednesday season three. It’s official… we shall return.” Commenters gushed in the replies, writing things like, “And for many more seasons” and, “I can’t wait to see the second season, I’m waiting for it with great curiosity … and the third is already official, fantastic news!”

Others mentioned that, at this point, they simply hoped that production on the new season could get underway soon so that fans would not have to wait as long for the third season. Despite being renewed in January 2023, season two will air more than two years after the show’s first season premiere. A sign for the producers, some fans wrote things like, “I’ll be gripping the sheets in agony waiting, but please… don’t let us wait three years again.”

Tim Burton, 66, will return as executive producer and occasional director on the show, maintaining its signature eerie atmosphere. Burton also recently directed Ortega in Beetlejuice, the long-awaited sequel to his 1988 cult classic.

Season Two Brings a Host of A-List Names

In addition to Billie Piper, the new season of Wednesday will see an array of big-name stars joining the cast, including Lady Gaga, Steve Buscemi, Joanna Lumley, and Thandiwe Newton. Other returning faces include Gwendoline Christie as headteacher Larissa Weems and Luis Guzmán as Wednesday’s father, Gomez Addams.

The lead star, Ortega herself, has also been taking on a larger role behind the scenes. The young actress recently came under fire for comments made in a podcast interview, where she revealed she would often “change lines” on set and had to “put my foot down” over character inconsistencies. Burton publicly came out in her defense, saying her comments had been taken out of context, and co-creator Alfred Gough added that her new producer title “made complete sense” to him. Ortega had been actively involved with the show’s production and regularly gave “notes on scripts”.

Joanna Lumley, one of the new additions to the cast, also shared her excitement at the opportunity: “There’s always something thrilling about working for Tim Burton. His whole mind takes him to a different world, and the world that they’ve created here for Wednesday and Nevermore and the family is just intoxicating.”

With Billie Piper’s casting, the official renewal of a third season, and a spin-off in the works, the universe is only expanding. Fans will have to wait until August, but until then, they can get through the time with Season One and keep the hype going for more mysteries at Nevermore Academy.