The Addams Family who inspired many TV shows and movies: Gomez Addams (John Astin, left) was madly in love with his wife, Morticia (Carolyn Jones, seated), and their two children, Wednesday (Lisa Loring) and Pugsley (Ken Weatherwax). The family, including Uncle Fester (Jackie Coogan), their towering butler Lurch (Ted Cassidy), Grandmama (Blossom Rock), and Thing, a hand that usually appeared out of a small wooden box, resided in an ornate, gloomy mansion.

Movies / TV

‘The Addams Family’: Stream Every Iteration of the Kooky Family Before ‘Wednesday’ Release

Where to watch the previous 'Addams Family' movies and TV shows ahead of Netflix's release of 'Wednesday' on Nov. 23, 2022.

by Lauren Anderson

Published on October 15, 2022

3 min read

‘The Addams Family’ TV show ran from 1964 until 1966

Developed from the Charles Addams’ New Yorker cartoons, David Levy and Donald Saltzman brought the 30-minute macabre sitcom to ABC on Sept. 18, 1964. It starred Carolyn Jones as Morticia Addams, John Astin as Gomez, Jackie Coogan as Uncle Fester, Ted Cassidy as Lurch, and Lisa Lorring as Wednesday Addams.

The Addams Family shot in black and white and aired for two seasons — 64 episodes in total. The series ended on Sept. 2, 1966 and is available to stream on Roku.

Addams Family TV shows

Six years after The Addams Family ended, the family appeared in the 1972 animation The New Scooby-Doo Movies. “Scooby-Doo Meets the Addams Family” (a.k.a. “Wednesday is Missing”) aired on CBS on Sept. 23, 1972. Astin, Jones, Coogan, and Cassidy provided their voices for the special. You can stream the episode through Daily Motion.

This television spinoff reignited fans’ interested in the Addams Family. As a result, several other television series were created over the years, including:

The Addams Family Fun-House (1973): The pilot, starring Jack Riley, Liz Torres, Stubby Kaye, Pat McCormick, Butch Patrick, and Felix Silla was never picked up for series.

The Addams Family (1973): The NBC animated series starring Lennie Weinrib, Janet Waldo, and Jodie Foster aired on NBC from 1973 until 1975. It is available to stream on YouTube.

Halloween with the New Addams Family (1977): The television reunion movie starring Parley Baer and Vito Scotti aired on NBC on Oct. 30, 1977. It’s available on Roku and Prime Video.

The Addams Family: The Animated Series (1992-1993): Another animated iteration, this remake ran on ABC after the success of the 1991 Addams Family movie. It starred Astin, Rip Taylor, Carol Channing, Jim Cummings, Debi Derryberry, Jeannie Elias, and Pat Fraley. Many of the episodes are available on YouTube.

The New Addams Family (1998-1999): Fox’s iteration ran for 65 episodes and starred Glenn Taranto, Ellie Harvie, Michael Roberds, Brody Smith, Nicole Fugere, John DeSantis, and Betty Phillips. It’s available through Prime Video.

‘The Addams Family’ and other movies

The 1991 movie The Addams Family (which inspired the 1992 series mentioned above) came out on Nov. 22. Anjelica Huston played Morticia Addams while Raul Julia was Gomez Addams and Christopher Lloyd was Uncle Fester. You can watch The Addams Family on Netflix.

Since then, several other Addams Family-inspired films have been released, including:

Addams Family Values (1993): Available on Roku, Pluto, Prime Video, YouTube, Vudu, Google Play, Apple TV, and Paramount+

Addams Family Reunion (1998): Available through ReelGood

The Addams Family (2019): Available through Prime Video, YouTube, Vudu, Apple TV, and Google Play

The Addams Family 2 (2021): Available through Prime Video, Roku, YouTube, Google Play, Paramount+, Philo, Vudu, and Apple TV

Tim Burton’s Addams Family movie that never was

In 2010, Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment were planning a Tim Burton stop-motion animation based on Addams’ drawings. However, in July 2013, news broke that the film was canceled (via Deadline).

Burton got his day, though. He worked on Netflix’s Wednesday, a sleuthing, supernaturally infused mystery charting Wednesday Addams’ (Jenna Ortega) years as a student at Nevermore Academy. Wednesday also stars Gwendoline Christie (Principal Larissa Weems), Catherine Zeta-Jones (Morticia Addams), Luis Guzmán (Gomez Addams), Fred Armisen (Uncle Fester), and Christina Ricci (Marilyn Thornhill).