Anjelica Huston Based Her Morticia Addams On A World Famous Model

The "Addams Family" gang have long been a source of comfort for the kind of proud weirdos who get head turns when they discuss their love of the macabre. For all their talk of death, sharp instruments, and methods of torture, they're loving in their own way. Each new incarnation of Charles Addams' creations look and act in a manner that plays to the strengths of the actors embodying them. John Astin's Gomez from the 1960s television series is a similar yet very different romantic beast than Raúl Juliá's iteration in the '90s Barry Sonnenfeld films. The same goes for Christina Ricci's Wednesday from those movies compared to Jenna Ortega's interpretation in Netflix's "Wednesday" series. Naturally, the same extends to Anjelica Huston as the sensual Morticia Addams, building upon what Carolyn Jones brought to the role on the '60s show.

The sizzling romantic chemistry between Huston and Juliá's Morticia and Gomez in 1991's "The Addams Family" and 1993's "Addams Family Values" ensures they're the first ones to come to mind when envisioning these characters. Huston's Morticia, specifically, is a soft-spoken goth with the glow of a specter you would feel honored to be haunted by. Not to mention, she's impossibly funny, with one of my favorite jokes being her disappointed reaction to learning how "The Cat in the Hat" ends. 

When it came to her influences, Huston based Morticia on the world famous model Jerry Hall. "With the Addams Family, everything white is black and everything good is bad, but Morticia is the most lenient, understanding, and wonderful mother," as Huston once explained (via The Guardian). "I've always seen Jerry as a perfect example of motherhood. We're still friends after 40 years, so I guess she didn't think that being the inspiration for Morticia was bad."

Easily recognizable through her blonde hair, blue eyes, and Texan drawl, Hall is a world famous model who's been a fixture of the industry for decades. Her work has often appeared in the many international versions of Vogue, Cosmopolitan, and Elle Magazines. But for as much as Hall has made a living out of being a model, like Huston, she's also an actor with credited performances in films like "Urban Cowboy," "Freejack," and "Vampire in Brooklyn." Comic book fans will also recognize the Southern belle as Alicia, the secretary to Jack Napier/Joker (Jack Nicholson), in Tim Burton's 1989 blockbuster "Batman." Ironically, Hall worked on that movie around the same time that Huston was dating Nicholson.

Huston and Hall first met in the '70s, with both of them diving headfirst into their modeling careers, only for the former to lean more into being an actor. With that said, the pair still remained the best of friends. When it comes to the "Addams Family" connection of it all, Hall initially doesn't seem all that aesthetically comparable to Morticia, barring their luscious locks. But it's easy to see how Hall's kind maternal instincts ended up informing the heart of Huston's performance. Morticia is a tremendous mother who legitimately cares for her children, especially when they play with sharp instruments. Even when Pubert (Kaitlyn Hooper) starts showing signs of being a "normal" child, she makes the effort to love him all the same. 

"The Addams Family" and "Addams Family Values" are currently streaming on Peacock and Kanopy.