Does Wednesday Addams Ever Smile In The Netflix Series (& How Often)?

Summary

Wednesday Addams smiles on rare occasions, such as when executing plans or feeling purposeful.
Wednesday’s smiles are insights into her personality, tugging at the heartstrings of fans.
Instances of Wednesday smiling include revenge, finding purpose, deciphering codes, and family moments.

Wednesday Addams is known for many things, but showing emotions and smiling aren’t among them. Her family, after all — the Addamses — aren’t exactly famous for being affectionate. Wednesday is practically allergic to color and takes pride in being emotionally restrained.

Wednesday has an icy-cold exterior and a deadpan sense of humor. She looks her friends, family, and acquaintances straight in the eye as she delivers those biting remarks on Wednesday that, at first, can be hard to get used to. However, anyone with thorough knowledge of Wednesday would know its protagonist does smile — just not that often, or the way most people do. While rare, there are several instances on Wednesday when the title character does crack a smile.

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Wednesday’s Unique Smile

Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams in the Netflix series Wednesday

Wednesday’s smile is mostly odd, and truth be told, slightly unsettling. She doesn’t smile during ordinary moments in life, but a smile comes up when she has a trick up her sleeve, or when she has orchestrated something with her sidekick Thing, or her bubbly best friend Enid Sinclair.

Wednesday also smiles when her meticulous planning pays off. Her smiles are few and far between, and there are moments when she does so from the heart. Each of these instances is an insight into Wednesday’s personality, and for her fans, they tug at the heartstrings.

So, When Does Wednesday Smile?

Wednesday, who wears her emotional restraint like a badge of honor, smiles a total of seven times on the show. She flashes her first smile at the end of the infamous piranha pool scene, where she gains notoriety for exacting revenge on her brother’s bullies. Up until that moment, Wednesday maintained her cold, dark, and morbid demeanor, walking the halls of Nancy Reagan High like a messianic figure, splitting the crowd by her sheer presence. She experiences a vision that guides her to identify the bullies who stuffed her brother, Pugsley, into a locker. Her smiles don’t appear by default, but only surface when she executes her best work, or when she feels she has a sense of purpose.

Releasing Piranhas

Season 1, Episode 1: “Wednesday’s Child Is Full of Woe”

Wednesday Piranhas dumping scene in Wednesday.

As mentioned before, Wednesday’s first smile appears as the piranhas rush towards their prey in the pool, and the bully leader, Dalton, is bitten. She climbs the stairs that lead up to the pool, releasing two bags of hungry piranhas into the water, and remarks:

The only person who gets to torture my brother is me.

The piranhas cause mass panic, as every water polo player struggles to escape the ravenous creatures. The camera pans to Wednesday at the height of this carnage, and she displays her first smile of satisfaction. It is later revealed that Dalton survived the attack, but lost a testicle.

Deciding To Stay At Nevermore

Season 1, Episode 1: “Wednesday’s Child Is Full of Woe”

Wednesday’s second smile arrives the night she realizes she’s found her purpose at Nevermore, and decides to continue at school. Her parents call her on the crystal ball at the end of her first school week, asking whether she likes it there. She does a quick mental tally of all the reasons she is compelled to stay. They include: two attempts on her life, a mysterious homicidal monster (the Hyde) who saved her, a prophecy claiming she might play a part in destroying Nevermore, and the discovery of her father’s long-buried murder case. “As much as it pains me to admit, you were right, Mother. I think I’m going to love it here,” she says, before flashing a satisfied smile.

Taking Down Bianca Barclay

Season 1, Episode 2: “Woe Is the Loneliest Number”

Wednesday’s third smile is subtle, but it lingers longer. Now part of the Black Cats with Enid and the rest, she vows the night before the Poe Cup to defeat Bianca Barclay in the annual canoe race. Wednesday, Enid, Thing, and the rest of their team display extraordinary spirit, but the credit mainly goes to her.

Deciphering The Code To The Nightshade Library

Season 1, Episode 2: “Woe Is the Loneliest Number”

Wednesday smiles the moment she cracks the code to enter Nevermore’s elite social club, the Nightshades’ HQs. She does so by studying the drawing that Rowan Laslow had tried to kill her over. The details in this sketch and watermark on the page lead her to Poe’s statue, where she solves a series of riddles, which come down to “snap twice.” With two snaps of her fingers, Wednesday gains entry into the club’s headquarters: a hidden library.

Destroying Crackstone’s Statue Mid-Performance

Season 1, Episode 3: “Friend or Woe”

Wednesday smiles as Outreach Day comes to a head, when she and Thing destroy Joseph Crackstone’s memorial statue in the town square. The townspeople of Jericho, including Nevermore students and Weems, are at the ceremony meant to memorialize the spirit of Crackstone, who, unbeknownst to many, persecuted a barn full of trapped outcasts, including Wednesday’s ancestor, Goody Addams.

Once Wednesday learns the truth about Crackstone’s so-called legacy, she sets her mind on revenge. She takes advantage of her role as a volunteer cello player with the Jericho High School marching band, assigned earlier to her by Weems. Wednesday calmly plays her cello, her eyes tracing Thing, who’d doused the area in gasoline. The plan is in motion: Thing strikes a match and the statue goes up in flames. Wednesday continues to play with a smile while people scramble for safety. Sheriff Galpin and Weems sense that Wednesday is somehow behind the act.

When It Rains Red

Season 1, Episode 4: “Woe What a Night”

Wednesday smiles as blood-red rain comes down in Wednesday.

The Rave’N night starts great, and the party has everything: glitz, glamor, and attendees dressed in gorgeous silvery-white attire. Everything is going well until Normies from Jericho hijack Nevermore’s sprinkler system, and quite literally paint the party red. But before this unfortunate turn of events, Wednesday performed her iconic dance, with the entire party watching in complete awe. It’s a hit, until the red paint deluge, which leads to Weems’ terrifying scream and Wednesday’s smile.

The One With Uncle Fester

Season 1, Episode 7: “If You Don’t Woe Me by Now”

Wednesday smiles when she sees Uncle Fester in Wednesday.

Lastly, a family member’s visit has Wednesday smiling ear to ear, and it’s her quirky Uncle Fester. The scene takes place right after Mayor Walker’s murder. Wednesday sees a shadowy figure stalking her, and she chases after it into the woods.

“Still as sharp as ever, my pigtail protégé,” this man says, and Wednesday immediately recognizes her favorite family member. This instance stands out because this particular smile comes from Wednesday’s heart.