Something was different about Tim Burton’s “Wednesday” set for Gwendoline Christie. As the “Game of Thrones” star recounted Weekly entertainment In a Nov. 24 interview, stepping into the dark and fantastical world as Nevermore Academy principal Larissa Weems was actually the first time she felt “beautiful” on screen. She credited this transformative experience in large part to Burton, who worked with Christie to develop her character at her own discretion. “He said, ‘You can do whatever you want with the character, you can do whatever you want with the character, and we’ll talk about it further,'” Christie said.
“This idea kept popping into my head, that Larissa Weems was someone who was an outcast, who went to an outcast school, who was always second best and was always in Morticia’s [Catherine Zeta-Jones] shadows,” Christie continued. Eventually, she came up with the idea of an old-school “screen siren” that would envision classic Hollywood glamour, even looking at old Hitchcock movies to see how the characters behaved. “What kept coming back to me was this idea of this Hitchcock-style heroine,” Christie said. “And oddly enough, Tim had exactly the same idea, and so did Colleen Atwood.”
Atwood is a renowned costume designer who Christie also credits with helping her become Principal of Weems in all her glory. “It’s the first time I’ve felt beautiful on screen,” Christie said. “I couldn’t be more heartfelt in expressing my extreme gratitude to Tim and Colleen and our hair and makeup team. Colleen Atwood is a legend in her own right, and what she does comes close to witchcraft in terms of transformation.”
Not only was Atwood incredibly cooperative, Christie added that Atwood also allowed her to feel more secure in her own body. “The way she made me feel was [that] My body felt celebrated and beautiful. I never felt like I was hiding anything or ashamed,” Christie said. “She made me feel amazing.”