Penguin Random House has announced a collaboration with Amazon MGM Studios on a new worldwide publishing programme for the global streaming phenomenon Wednesday, the spin-off series inspired by Charles Addams’ cartoon creation, The Addams Family, airing on Netflix.

First releases include a Wednesday-inspired cook book, and a Young Adult novelisation and of the show’s first season.

The Emmy Award–winning Wednesday, starring stars Jenna Ortega as lead character, was watched by 50 million households during its first week and 182 million by its fourth, achieving Number One status in 89 countries and breaking the record twice for having the most hours viewed in a week for an English-language series on Netflix. It continued to chart for six months after its debut and reached the global Top 10 no less than twenty times.

The first English-language series to surpass 400 million viewing hours in a single week, online, it’s been similarly successful, #WednesdayAddams has had a staggering 22 billion views, achieving global icon status.

A second season of Wednesday was announced last January, currently expected to launch next year, with Thandiwe Newton joining the cast. Jenna Ortega has said “everything’s bigger” in the coming arc, and “each episode will feel like a movie.”

The first season, which saw Wednesday attempt to solve a monster mystery at her new school, Nevermore Academy, also starred actors including Emma Myers, Hunter Doohan, Christina Ricci and Victor Dorobantu. Netflix streamed the show, but MGM produced and holds the licensing rights.

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Announced this week by Christopher Angelilli, VP and editor-in-chief and director of Licensed Publishing at Random House Children’s Books, the book programme will launch in July 2024 and include a variety of titles for children, teens and adult readers, including an all-ages The Wednesday: Official Colouring Book (due for release in July 2024), I am Wednesday: Little Golden Book (July 2024), The Official Nightshade Society Journal (27th August 2024), a Wednesday young adult novelisation (3rd September 2024), and a Wednesday cookbook (September 2024).

Featuring highly detailed and hauntingly beautiful black-and-white illustrations, The Wednesday: Official Colouring Book is described the perfect way for teens and adult fans of the hit series to channel their inner darkness, while grown-ups can enjoy introducing their favourite show to the kids in their lives with the delightfully ghoulish I am Wednesday: Little Golden Book. Perfect for young readers aged two to five, the book will also appeal to adult fans and collectors.

Clarkson Potter, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC will publish Wednesday: The Official Nightshade Society Journal is a notebook described as perfectly suited for school, work, and home. With smooth writing paper, a dot-grid design, and macabre quotes from the show, this journal hold notes, thoughts, sketches, hexes and more. A game and oracle deck will follow from Clarkson Potter in 2025.

Random House Books for Young Readers will also publish Wednesday: A Novelisation of Season One by Tehlor Kay Mejia, based on scripts by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, Kayla Alpert, April Blair and Matt Lambert. Fans can return to the hallowed halls of Nevermore Academy to revisit the adventures of season one of Wednesday through the first-person narration of Wednesday herself.

Also forthcoming is The Official Wednesday Cookbook: The Woefully Weird Recipes of Nevermore Academy by Emmy Award–winning television producer and author Mari Mancusi, published by Random House Worlds, an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House. Featuring 60 recipes that range from Wednesday’s Woeful Waffles to Enid’s rainbow-sprinkled… well, everything, Wednesday fans of all ages will never(more) go hungry again with this perfect cookbook for Halloween.

“It’s almost terrifying how monstrously popular Wednesday Addams has become since the series launch on Netflix,” said Christopher Angelilli. “Penguin Random House couldn’t be more thrilled to embark on a worldwide publishing collaboration with Amazon MGM Studios to celebrate the beloved antiheroine.

“Our eclectic programme includes something for readers of all ages – from a Little Golden Book and cookbooks to tarot cards – and offers fans of the series new ways to enjoy their favourite show during the wait between seasons.”

“We’ve decided we want to lean into the horror aspect of the show a little bit more,” Ortega, who will also serve as a producer on the second season, said at the time of the announcement. “Because it is so lighthearted, and a show like this with vampires and werewolves and superpowers, you don’t want to take yourself too seriously.”

• Check out official Wednesday-related products on AmazonUK (Affiliate Link)

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.

Categories: downthetubes News, Merchandise, Other Worlds, Television

Tags: Amazon MGM Studios, Charles Addams, Jenna Ortega, Mari Mancusi, Netflix, Penguin Random House, Tehlor Kay Mejia, The Addams Family, Wednesday