Wednesday, Netflix’s wildly popular gothic mystery series set in the Addams Family universe, has been slowly peeling back the layers of one of the family’s most enigmatic figures: Ophelia Frump, Morticia Addams’ long-lost sister. Mentioned repeatedly throughout Wednesday Season 2 but unseen for most of the run, Ophelia has become one of the show’s central mysteries, tying into themes of psychic powers, family secrets, and the rising stakes at Nevermore Academy.
In Season 2, Part 1, Wednesday drops heavy hints about Ophelia’s past and her significance. Morticia (played by Catherine Zeta-Jones) relates that Ophelia once shared the same psychic raven abilities as her daughter, Wednesday (Jenna Ortega), and that she developed those powers to a dangerous degree. Flashbacks and dialogue reveal that while at Nevermore Academy, Ophelia’s abilities spiraled out of control — she was found screaming and shedding black tears, a disturbing parallel to Wednesday’s own psychic struggles. Out of concern, Grandmama Frump (Joanna Lumley) had her institutionalized at Willow Hill Psychiatric Hospital, even though Morticia objected. After her confinement, Ophelia simply disappeared for over two decades, leaving her fate and motives shrouded in mystery.
At the end of Wednesday Season 2, viewers finally see Ophelia but only briefly and obliquely. The final scene shows a figure wearing a flower crown (a visual callback to her classic presentation in earlier Addams Family lore) locked inside a hidden room in Grandmama’s house and murmuring ominously about Wednesday. That image cemented her presence in the story while leaving open questions about her intentions: whether she’s allied with Wednesday, antagonistic, or something far more complicated remains unclear.
Across various Addams Family incarnations — from Charles Addams’ original comics to the 1960s sitcom — Ophelia has long existed as Morticia’s sister, traditionally depicted as her opposite: sunny, floral, and un-Addams-like in temperament. The Netflix series retools her legacy into something darker, explicitly tying her to psychic ability and tragedy, making her more than just a quirky relative.
Before the official cast announcement, fans wildly speculated about who might portray Ophelia — at one point theories swirled that Lady Gaga might be involved, fueled by comments from Wednesday cast members and confusion about her actual role in Season 2 Part 2. Some thought her character Rosaline Rotwood might secretly be Ophelia in disguise, given visual cues and cryptic teases from social media.
Those theories were put to rest in November 2025, when Netflix and Wednesday showrunners confirmed that Eva Green (known for Penny Dreadful and Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children) has been cast as Aunt Ophelia for Wednesday Season 3. Green’s involvement was announced alongside praise from co-creators Al Gough and Miles Millar, who highlighted her “elegant, haunting, and beautifully unpredictable” presence as a perfect fit for the role. In the story, Ophelia is again Morticia’s sister, missing for years after losing control of her powers, and said to share psychic gifts similar to Wednesday’s. Her arc is expected to be a major trigger for the next chapter of the series.
Green’s casting reunites her with executive producer Tim Burton, with whom she has worked on previous projects. While Wednesday has not yet announced an official Season 3 release date, production news suggests a planned debut around 2027.
In Wednesday, Ophelia’s eerie absence has loomed as a key piece of Nevermore’s supernatural puzzle. Her emergence from the shadows — and now her physical embodiment through a major star — signals that the show is ready to tackle deeper Addams Family lore and the psychic legacy she shares with her niece. Whether she will help or hinder Wednesday’s mission in future episodes remains one of the most compelling questions moving forward.
