The “Wednesday” set designed by Tim Burton for Gwendoline Christie has a unique quality. As Larissa Weems, Principal of Nevermore Academy, said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly on Nov. 24, entering this gloomy and surreal realm was the first time she had ever felt “beautiful” on camera. She gave a lot of the credit for this life-changing event to Burton, who collaborated with Christie to shape her character in the way Christie thought suitable. He told her, “You can build the persona into whatever you want; feel free to do that, and we’ll keep talking about it,” Christie said.
Larissa Weems was always second best and constantly in Morticia’s [Catherine Zeta-Jones] shadow, the thought of Larissa Weems as an outcast who attended a school for misfits kept returning to Christie. She eventually settled on the concept of a vintage “screen siren,” picturing old Hollywood glitz and even watched vintage Hitchcock movies to observe how the characters behaved. Christie remarked, “This concept of this Hitchcock-style lady kept coming to me. Oddly, Tim and Colleen Atwood both had the exact same thought.
Christie attributes Atwood, a renowned costume designer, with helping her transform into Principal Weems in all her splendour. Christie remarked, “I’ve never felt more lovely on TV.” Tim and Colleen, as well as our hair and makeup crew, deserve to be considered legends, and Colleen Atwood’s work is comparable to witchcraft in terms of metamorphosis.
Christie said that Atwood was not only very collaborative but also helped her feel more comfortable in her own skin. She made Christie feel as though her body was honoured and beautiful, and she never once made her feel as like she had something to be embarrassed of. She gave me a fantastic feeling.
