Netflix Commits an Ugly Murder by Cleaving Wednesday Season 2 in Two

It’s not hard to figure out how the first season of Wednesday became, as of writing, Netflix’s most-viewed English-language series ever: A big-name director like Tim Burton, combined with a buzzy new star like Jenna Ortega and I.P. deeply embedded in today’s pop culture. Throw in a dash of Hogwarts and an engaging murder mystery, and it was all pretty delicious. Season 2 seems well-positioned to follow along that path… Though it’s honestly hard to tell, from the first four episodes premiering on August 6th, which serve as an unsatisfying appetizer, not at all a complete meal.

The beginning of the season finds Wednesday Addams (Ortega) returning to Nevermore Academy after a summer break spent pursuing her own hobbies (like tracking down serial killers). Accompanied by her younger brother Pugsley (Isaac Ordonez) and reunited with her ever-cheerful werewolf roommate Enid (Emma Myers), Wednesday finds herself facing an unexpected challenge — after saving the school last year, she might have actually become… popular with her fellow students. Something she has no interest in encouraging.

She does, however, immediately plunge into a new investigation after a vision promises deathly consequences for those she loves. And remains focused on it: One notable shift with these new episodes is that while Season 1 found Wednesday caught in a love triangle between Xavier (Percy Hynes White) and Tyler (Hunter Doohan), she’s far more focused on her personal quests this season than she is on romance. (The writers were paying attention to Ortega’s notes about that aspect of Season 1, it appears.)

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Xavier was sent away to another school after the previous school year, a line of dialogue casually tells us at the beginning of Season 2. As for Tyler, well, the events of the first season removed him as a serious love interest for Wednesday… as far as we know, for now. Because like so many Netflix series — especially its most high-profile ones, the season has been split in two parts, with Part 2 coming in September.

Critics often get only a sampling of episodes of a show before they sit down to review it, but in the case of this particular split, creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar have given us four episodes of set-up that do culminate in a pretty dramatic moment for the series… before cutting to credits. And that one dramatic moment, on its own merits, doesn’t quite have the impact necessary to do anything other than aggravate the viewer.

This isn’t the first gratuitous or arguably unnecessary season split in recent memory — shows including Emily in Paris, Outer Banks, and Bridgerton have all played a similar game, and Stranger Things will be making sure every entertainment journalist is working across every major winter holiday later this year wtith a three-part release.

Wednesday (Netflix)

At least when The Crown split up its final season in 2023, there was some thematic sense to it, as Volume 1 of that season focused on Princess Diana’s life and death, with Volume 2 then focusing on the royal family’s future. However, while Episode 4 of Wednesday Season 2 might wrap up a few details, it’s a clear midpoint for the story being told, and after over a decade of Netflix conditioning its subscribers to understand they can control the pace of their viewing, the end of that episode hits the narrative brakes so hard that whiplash feels imminent.

Another reason the season split really seems like a misstep here is that so much of what makes Wednesday so fun to watch is how immersive its gothic world of Outcasts can be; by the time one feels like they’ve gotten their footing in this new season, all four episodes are over, leaving the viewer with nothing but an unsatisfying cliffhanger to stew on for the next four weeks.

Adding to this frustration is how many intriguing new components have been introduced so far for Season 2. Catherine Zeta-Jones’ Morticia and Luis Guzmán’s Gomez are much more present, and as the new principal of Nevermore, second-billed Steve Buscemi is instantly a perfect fit for this series, settling into the established milieu perfectly while still preserving his own unique energy. What’s perhaps most exciting about his presence here is the way he brings a hint of danger with him, a certain ruthlessness that doesn’t automatically reveal him to be the season’s Big Bad, but definitely indicates that he’ll be more than a match for Wednesday.

Buscemi isn’t the only new cast member, either: Billie Piper (of Doctor Who and I Hate Suzie fame) proves to have a pretty solid American accent as Nevermore’s new music teacher, while comedy legend Joanna Lumley plays Wednesday’s beloved grandmama — a very different interpretation of the character from Judith Malina and Carol Kane’s. Also, Christopher Lloyd (the original Fester from the Barry Sonnenfeld films, of course) plays Professor Orloff, who does a decent job of keeping an eye on his students given the fact that he’s a severed head floating in a jar.

There are no signs yet of a big viral dance moment, but there is a very fun Bruce Springsteen needle drop and composer Chris Bacon sneaks some pop-rock covers into the orchestral soundtrack. Really, there’s a lot of promise here, despite the season split that, instead of enhancing the story, ends up curbing the show’s momentum.

Of course, we’ll be back for Part 2 next month, if only because that’s when Lady Gaga’s supposed to show up. But those excited about the return to Nevermore should only prepare for a short stay now, and an annoying wait for the rest.

Wednesday Season 2 Part 1 is streaming now on Netflix. Part 2 will debut on September 3rd, 2025. Check out the trailer below.