The Addams Family 2 (2021)
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The Addams family embarks on a cross-country road trip that leads to a bizarre confrontation with a scientist claiming to be Wednesday's true father.
The story
At a science fair, Wednesday Addams presents an experiment using her pet squid's DNA on Uncle Fester, which causes him to begin mutating. Worried that their children are drifting apart, Gomez and Morticia decide to take the family on a vacation. While Fester, Thing, and Lurch head out on a road trip across the United States, Gomez and Morticia are approached by a lawyer, Mr. Mustela, who claims Wednesday was switched at birth. The family is pursued by Mustela and his henchman Pongo as they travel toward Salem, Massachusetts, eventually taking a detour to Niagara Falls.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Wednesday Addams conducts a DNA experiment on Uncle Fester that causes him to mutate, while her parents, Gomez and Morticia, plan a family vacation to reconnect with their children. During the trip, the family is pursued by Mr. Mustela, a lawyer claiming Wednesday is not a biological Addams. The family travels through Niagara Falls, Sleepy Hollow, and San Antonio, eventually reaching Miami to meet Cousin Itt. Wednesday discovers Mustela works for Cyrus Strange, a scientist who claims to be her father. After a DNA test seemingly confirms she isn't Gomez's daughter, Wednesday visits Cyrus in Sausalito. Cyrus reveals he is using her to create human-animal hybrids and captures the family to test on them. However, Lurch and Pongo (who were former cellmates) team up to free the family. During a scuffle, Cyrus transforms into a hybrid monster. Wednesday shows compassion, and Fester, now a full squid monster, defeats Cyrus, who falls to his death. Wednesday uses a family blood necklace to turn Fester back to normal. The family returns home with Pongo and Ophelia, Cyrus's daughter who becomes human and falls in love with Pugsley. Gomez reveals he wears a toupée due to a napalm accident.
- Original title
- The Addams Family 2: Road Trip
- First release year
- 2021
- Runtime (minutes)
- 93
- Production countries
- Canada; United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Greg Tiernan; Conrad Vernon
- Writers
- Dan Hernandez · screenplay; Benji Samit · screenplay; Ben Queen · screenplay; Susanna Fogel · screenplay; Dan Hernandez · story; Benji Samit · story
- Cast and characters
- Oscar Isaac · Gomez Addams; Charlize Theron · Morticia Addams; Chloë Grace Moretz · Wednesday Addams; Nick Kroll · Uncle Fester; Javon Walton · Pugsley Addams; Wallace Shawn · Mr. Mustela; Snoop Dogg · Cousin Itt; Bette Midler · Grandmama Addams
- Genres
- animated; supernatural; black comedy
- Themes
- Family love; Identity; Biology vs. Identity
- Tone and mood
- Black comedy; Creepy kookiness; Manic comedy
- Setting
- United States (including Niagara Falls, Sleepy Hollow, San Antonio, Miami, and Sausalito, California)
- Premise and plot tags
- Road trip; Mad scientist; Family vacation; DNA test; Mutation
- Source material / true-story basis
- Characters created by Charles Addams
- Franchise connections
- The Addams Family
- Content notes
- Paternity issues; DNA tests
- Reception
- The film received generally negative reviews from critics, described as 'ooky' and 'anemic,' though it received a 'B' average grade from CinemaScore audiences.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 37 · scale: 100 · review count: 23
- Awards and nominations
- Best Original Score in an Animated Film · Hollywood Music in Media Awards · 12th · win; Best Storyboarding – Feature · Annie Awards · 49th · nomination; Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie · Kids' Choice Awards · 2022 · nomination; Best Animated Film · Saturn Awards · 47th · nomination
- Production trivia
- It was the final animated film distributed by United Artists Releasing before it was folded into MGM.; The film was released alongside Venom: Let There Be Carnage and The Many Saints of Newark.; The film was moved up from October 22 to October 1, 2021, to accommodate the release of No Time to Die.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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