If you have watched the newest Addams Family installment on Netflix focused on Wednesday Addams, you might think that Thing is a CGI creation. Thing is the hand that has been with the Addams family for ages. He comes along with Wednesday in the new series and helps her solve a series of mysteries and crimes.
Turns out that Thing is played by a real actor, Romanian magician Victor Dorobantu. When looking to cast the part, VFX supervisor Tom Turnbull explained that they were looking for, “Somebody who had the right look to the hands, who had nimble fingers, who was able to do all these moves (was needed). Also (he) had to be young enough and supple enough to fit in very awkward situations.”
Romanian magician Victor Dorobantu plays Thing in the new ‘Wednesday’ series on Netflix
Victor fit the bill perfectly! While shooting Wednesday, he would wear a full-body blue suit with only his hand exposed so that the rest of his body could be erased in editing. There was a prosthetic built for the top of his hand so it would appear as just a hand. It was a lot of work to make Thing work at times.
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Victor said, “(Y)ou have to prepare with the VFX guys. They have to see what angle they should use, how is Thing positioning, find ways to hide Thing. For example, under the bed. ‘Hey, I can’t fit under the bed, let’s make a hole in the floor.’ ‘Hey, I can’t fit under the floor so let’s raise the whole building in the air.’ We all tried to make a teamwork for the Thing and what it ended up looking like was awesome.”
If you’re interested in learning more, watch the video about behind the scenes of filming Thing below:
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