Catherine Zeta-Jones has spent more than three decades in the public eye, yet stepping into the black dress of Morticia Addams brought a very particular kind of scrutiny.
Morticia isn’t simply another television character. Generations grew up with different versions of the Addams matriarch, and everyone seems to have an opinion about how she should look, speak and behave.
That became especially noticeable during Wednesday Season 2, when Zeta-Jones’ role expanded dramatically. Morticia and Gomez moved onto the Nevermore campus, bringing the Addams parents much closer to Wednesday’s story than they had been during Season 1. Netflix confirmed that the expanded storyline deliberately explored the increasingly complicated relationship between Morticia and her daughter. Netflix
The result? More Catherine, more Morticia — and considerably more debate.
Morticia became much more important in Season 2
In the first season, Zeta-Jones appeared relatively sparingly.
Season 2 changed that.
Morticia became chair of Nevermore’s fundraising committee, while her relationship with Wednesday developed into one of the season’s central family conflicts. Grandmama Hester Frump, played by Joanna Lumley, entered the picture as well, creating a three-generation dynamic between women who share plenty of similarities but aren’t particularly good at admitting it. Netflix
Zeta-Jones was delighted.
“I was thrilled because for such an iconic character, you don’t really know a lot about Morticia,” she said while discussing the expanded role. Los Angeles Times
But giving audiences more Morticia also meant giving them more material to dissect.
Some viewers questioned the writing rather than Catherine herself
One recurring discussion among Wednesday viewers concerned whether this version of Morticia behaved like the character they remembered.
Some fans argued that the increased conflict and secrecy between Wednesday and her mother felt inconsistent with the unusually accepting Addams family portrayed in previous incarnations.
Others liked precisely that change, believing it gave Morticia something more substantial to do than simply appear glamorous beside Gomez.
In one fan discussion, for example, viewers debated Morticia keeping secrets, clashing with Wednesday and seemingly attempting to influence her daughter’s path. Even the original poster, who praised Zeta-Jones’ casting and performance, questioned some of the writing decisions. Reddit
That distinction matters.
Not every criticism surrounding Morticia was criticism of Catherine Zeta-Jones.
A significant portion concerned how the character had been written.
Catherine deliberately refused to reinvent Morticia beyond recognition
From the beginning, Zeta-Jones understood that there were certain things audiences expected.
She didn’t want to turn Morticia into something aggressively contemporary simply for the sake of being different.
Discussing her approach to the character, she explained that she didn’t want Morticia suddenly wearing trousers or looking like a radically redesigned version of herself.
“When I close my eyes, I see Morticia,” she said. Netflix
Season 2 nevertheless allowed considerably more experimentation.
Costume designer Colleen Atwood expanded Morticia’s wardrobe beyond pure black, incorporating deep red into some designs. There were different looks for home, Nevermore and even a hilariously elaborate version of Morticia dressed for a camping trip. Netflix
For Zeta-Jones, the goal was to “push the envelope” while remaining recognizably Morticia. Netflix
Then came the London premiere
The cast gathered at Central Hall Westminster in London for the global premiere of Wednesday Season 2.
Netflix transformed the venue accordingly: Nevermore’s gates, a hearse, ravens, a graveyard and even appearances from Thing turned the premiere into an extension of the series’ gothic universe. About Netflix
And Catherine certainly didn’t arrive dressed like Morticia.
Instead of black, she embraced vivid red.
The appearance immediately created a visual contrast with the character audiences had spent months watching her play.
At 55 at the time of the premiere, Zeta-Jones appeared polished and theatrical, with her dark hair swept into an elegant style and a sharply structured red ensemble that stood apart against the gothic setting.
Her appearance has attracted scrutiny for years
Of course, Catherine’s face has been discussed long before Wednesday.
She became internationally famous in the 1990s, particularly after The Mask of Zorro transformed her into one of Hollywood’s most recognizable leading women.
Then came Entrapment, Traffic and Chicago, the latter earning her an Academy Award.
The photographs from those years are now decades old.
Yet celebrity culture routinely places images of Zeta-Jones in her 20s and 30s beside photographs taken today and asks audiences to analyze every difference.
The actress has previously pushed back against assumptions surrounding her appearance. She told Good Housekeeping in 2016 that she had not undergone surgery at that point, while adding that she wasn’t categorically opposed to doing so in the future.
The larger issue, she suggested, was people’s assumption that they knew precisely what she had or hadn’t done.
The transformation photographs span more than 30 years
Looking at RARE PHOTOS of Catherine through the decades makes one thing particularly obvious: audiences have watched virtually her entire adult life unfold on camera.
There is the young Welsh actress from The Darling Buds of May.
Then the raven-haired Elena Montero of The Mask of Zorro.
The glamorous Hollywood star of the early 2000s.
The Oscar winner.
The wife of Michael Douglas.
And, decades later, Morticia Addams.
Her appearance has naturally evolved across that enormous span of time, as have her hairstyles, makeup and fashion.
But there is another transformation that is arguably more interesting.
The young actress who once had to adjust her Welsh accent for roles now speaks about it openly and proudly. Recent interviews surprised some viewers who had rarely heard her natural Welsh voice. Parade
Playing Morticia meant following some formidable women
There was also an unavoidable challenge built into the role.
Carolyn Jones created the unforgettable television version of Morticia in the 1960s.
Anjelica Huston then delivered her own enormously popular interpretation in the 1991 and 1993 Addams Family movies.
Zeta-Jones knew comparisons were inevitable.
Rather than imitate either woman, she focused on creating her own version while preserving Morticia’s essential visual identity.
She has described the character as iconic and acknowledged the actresses who played her before. The physical presentation, she believed, still needed to unmistakably communicate Morticia Addams. SAMDB
That meant the silhouette.
The hair.
The movement.
And especially the voice.
Zeta-Jones told Vogue that finding how Morticia sounded was fundamental to finding the character. Vogue
Season 2 deliberately made Morticia more vulnerable
The biggest change wasn’t cosmetic at all.
It was emotional.
Zeta-Jones described Morticia and Wednesday’s relationship as “beautiful,” “contentious” and “fraught.” Jenna Ortega similarly explained that Season 2 deliberately included moments revealing how alike mother and daughter actually are beneath their constant clashes. Netflix
That meant audiences saw something previous versions didn’t always emphasize:
Morticia struggling as a mother.
Wednesday wants independence.
Morticia knows enough about her daughter’s abilities to be frightened by them.
Grandmama complicates everything further.
The result is an Addams family that still loves one another intensely while nevertheless behaving like an actual family capable of conflict.
Series creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar said that was intentional. Their version retains the family’s loyalty while introducing genuine generational tension between parents, children and grandparents. Netflix
And Catherine was finally given much more to do
Zeta-Jones didn’t hide her enthusiasm about the expanded material.
She fenced.
She explored Morticia’s relationship with her mother.
She played out increasingly complicated scenes with Wednesday.
She even drew upon fencing skills first developed decades earlier while making The Mask of Zorro. Netflix
For an actress who initially appeared in Wednesday primarily as the heroine’s glamorous, intimidating mother, Season 2 offered an opportunity to turn Morticia into a considerably fuller character.
That expansion inevitably meant more opinions.
Some viewers preferred the mysterious Morticia seen in smaller doses.
Others welcomed the additional family drama.
And some simply couldn’t stop comparing Zeta-Jones with the actresses who came before her.
But controversy has followed Morticia for generations
That’s the funny thing about an iconic character.
Every generation thinks its version is the definitive one.
Carolyn Jones wasn’t Anjelica Huston.
Anjelica Huston wasn’t Catherine Zeta-Jones.
And Catherine’s Morticia exists inside a series centered not on the Addams parents, but their fiercely independent teenage daughter.
That requires a different relationship.
So when the debate resurfaced around Zeta-Jones and her Wednesday appearances, it reflected something bigger than one actress, one outfit or one premiere.
It reflected how strongly audiences feel ownership over characters they’ve loved for decades.
The RARE PHOTOS from Catherine Zeta-Jones’ career and her striking London appearances reveal an actress who has changed enormously since Hollywood first embraced her — while still possessing the dramatic presence that made casting her as Morticia seem almost inevitable.
And whether viewers love every choice this version of Morticia makes or argue over the writing, one thing is difficult to dispute:
More than 30 years into her career, Catherine Zeta-Jones can still walk onto a carpet and immediately become the person everyone is looking at.
Speaking of stars who get people talking, you won’t want to miss how Carrie Underwood surprised Luke Bryan’s sold-out Nashville crowd with a rock performance that left fans divided, or delve into Olivia Newton-John’s complicated love life that kept everyone guessing. And for another inspiring story about embracing change, check out how Miranda Lambert found peace with her body at 42.
