WITH THE LEGENDARY Tim Burton on board as an executive producer and frequent director, it’s never been a problem for Netflix’s Wednesday to attract major names to its cast. Obviously Jenna Ortega leads the show as the titular character, which has also included stars like Christina Ricci, Steve Buscemi, Luis Guzman, and Catherine Zeta-Jones among its main cast.
But after becoming one of Netflix’s biggest hits of all time in season 1, season 2 seems to have upped the ante in terms of its ambitious story, and has tons of fun guest stars to go along with it. Not only does Fred Armisen return as Uncle Fester (a part he played to perfection back in season 1), but the show also features short appearances from the likes of Anthony Michael Hall (reuniting with Burton after working together on Edward Scissorhands) along with Thandiwe Newton and the great Christopher Lloyd (who famously played Fester in the ’90s Addams Family movies).
Season 2 also introduces a brand new character named Judi Spannagel, who is the cheery executive assistant at Willow Hill Psychiatric Hospital, where Wednesday heads to visit Tyler (Hunter Doohan). Judi is loyal and excited about the skills and talent of her boss, Dr. Rachael Fairburn (Thandiwe Newton), who is the chief psychiatrist at Willow Hill. It makes for a fun introductory scene, as Judi’s enthusiasm makes for the perfect foil to Wednesday’s constant dourness.
But fans online saw Judi and quickly recognized someone familiar. And that’s because Judi is played by actress Heather Matarazzo, who has been a part of highly-seen movies since the ’90s—making up most of her life.
Judi Spannagel is played by Heather Matarazzo
Heather Matarazzo joins the cast of Wednesday in season 2 as Judi Spannagel, and if she looks familiar, it’s because you’ve probably seen her in a number of different movies through the years.
Most fans seem to recognize her best as Lilly from The Princess Diaries and its sequel, which she starred in alongside Anne Hathaway. But when The Princess Diaries came out in 2001, Matarazzo, 18 at the time, was already a well-established actress. She’d made her film debut in director Todd Solandz’s indie hit Welcome to the Dollhouse in 1995 and also appeared in both The Devil’s Advocate and Scream 3.
She went on to appear in the black comedy film Saved!, in Eli Roth’s horror sequel Hostel: Part II and alongside Amy Poehler and Tina Fey in Sisters. In more recent years, she’s shown up in Gus Van Sant’s Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot and reprising her role in the 2022 Scream reboot, playing the parent to Mason Gooding and Jasmin Savoy Brown’s characters.
So, when you Judi in Wednesday season 2 and start thinking she looks awfully familiar, well, it’s because you’ve definitely spent some time in her presence before.
Evan is the culture editor for Men’s Health, with bylines in The New York Times, MTV News, Brooklyn Magazine, and VICE. He loves weird movies, watches too much TV, and listens to music more often than he doesn’t.
