Netflix’s Wednesday series has become a global phenomenon, captivating audiences and breaking streaming records. A significant element of its viral success is the now-iconic Wednesday Song Dance, performed by Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams. This quirky and unconventional dance sequence has exploded across social media, especially TikTok, becoming a massive trend and even influencing music charts.
The dance, featured in the fourth episode of Wednesday, showcases Wednesday’s unique personality as she fearlessly expresses herself on the dance floor, unconcerned with traditional notions of coordination. In the show, this scene is set to the energetic rhythm of “Goo Goo Muck” by The Cramps. However, TikTok creators gravitated towards a different musical backdrop: Lady Gaga’s “Bloody Mary.”
While “Bloody Mary” wasn’t originally part of the Wednesday soundtrack, the TikTok community embraced it as the unofficial Wednesday song dance anthem. This phenomenon led to countless videos of users recreating Ortega’s distinctive moves to the Gaga track, often overlaying it onto the original Netflix scene, effectively replacing “Goo Goo Muck.”
Jenna Ortega herself revealed in an interview with NME that she had complete creative control over the choreography of this Wednesday song dance. “I choreographed that myself! I’m not a dancer and I’m sure that’s obvious,” she shared. Interestingly, Ortega also mentioned that she was filming the scene on her first day with COVID, adding another layer of unexpectedness to the dance’s creation. Despite feeling unwell, she delivered a performance that resonated with millions.
Lady Gaga acknowledged the unexpected resurgence of “Bloody Mary,” a song from her 2011 album, Born This Way, fueled by the Wednesday song dance trend. She enthusiastically embraced the viral moment, tweeting support for the series and Wednesday Addams, further amplifying the connection between her song and the dance.
The influence of TikTok on music and popular culture is undeniable. Spotify even integrated the Wednesday song dance into the visual for “Bloody Mary” on their platform, showcasing Wednesday’s moves when users play the song. This cemented “Bloody Mary” as the de facto Wednesday song dance track, somewhat overshadowing the original song, “Goo Goo Muck.” Despite The Cramps’ perfect fit for the scene in the show, Lady Gaga’s older track unexpectedly became the soundtrack to the global Wednesday song dance craze, demonstrating the unpredictable power of social media trends.
