Jenna Ortega, the popular actor, has made a plea to her fans to cease mistreating Wednesday plush dolls, following a TikTok trend that has caused frustration among department stores. The plush dolls, donning Wednesday’s iconic dark school uniform and jet black pigtails, garnered attention after the release of the latest trailer for the supernatural series. The Addams Family spin-off focuses on Wednesday Addams, a stoic teenage girl with psychic powers working to unravel a murder mystery.
The show made waves upon its debut in November 2022, with Jenna Ortega portraying the lead role, originally portrayed by Lisa Loring in the 1960s series and later by Christina Ricci in the 1991 film adaptation. Users on TikTok have been entering stores and playing with the plush dolls, altering their hair to create a bald appearance on the character’s forehead. In response to this behaviour, the 23-year-old actress stepped in, urging fans to refrain from such actions after encountering a display of Wednesday plush dolls with egg-shaped heads. A notice written emphatically in capital letters stated, “Do not flip Wednesday’s hair, you will be asked to leave,” prompting Ortega to plead, “Please don’t.”
Commenting on the video, fans expressed their amusement, with brands like Fanta, Play-Doh, and La Roche Posay also contributing to the lighthearted banter. One fan quipped, “That’s not Wednesday, that’s Thursday.” A recent Netflix teaser provided a glimpse behind the scenes, teasing the second season of the show as “bigger and more twisted.” Ortega, in character, jokingly warned, “Let’s play dolls,” while hinting at the forthcoming season’s darker tone.
Although Netflix has yet to confirm an official release date, filming for the show is anticipated to take place in Ireland, marking a shift from its original setting in Romania. Deadline reported that fans could possibly expect the second season to premiere in 2025 at the earliest. Discussing the upcoming series, Ortega shared with Variety, “We’ve decided we want to lean into the horror aspect of the show a little bit more… We’re ditching any romantic love interest for Wednesday, which is really great.”
Jenna Ortega’s call to fans to halt the viral Wednesday doll trend underscores the impact of online trends on real-world merchandise and the importance of respecting properties and characters created for entertainment purposes.