Tim Burton's reboot of The Addams Family is a direct appeal to his imaginative, macabre aesthetic, and it might be just what Burton needs to rescue his career. Tim Burton is best known for the distinctive gothic-fantasy style, and his trademark aesthetic is a hallmark of some of his best work, which includes Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, and The Nightmare Before Christmas (the latter of which he did not direct, but is largely considered the primary creative vision behind). Tim Burton is developing The Addams Family as a live-action television series, and the project is the perfect opportunity for the director to return to his roots.
Tim Burton is best understood by examining his work in the 1980-90s. The 2005 film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory saw the director pivot from fringe projects to helming blockbuster films, and his career took a definitive downturn in the 2010s. Projects such as Alice in Wonderland and Dark Shadows had massive budgets but are considered critical failures compared to Burton's early work. In recent years, Burton has received criticism for selling out and for turning his signature auteur aesthetic into a glossy, over-produced parody of itself.
The biggest problem with Tim Burton's recent projects is that overall, the narrative tones are off in each respective piece, due in part to under-developed plots. Alice in Wonderland was a major mismatch for Tim Burton, as his trademark blend of creepiness and surreal humor failed to cut through the over-reliance on CGI — and Johnny Depp. The movie was weighed down by its over-designed, unconstrained visuals and a heavy adult tone that failed to capture the whimsy associated with Lewis Carroll's fantasy. Burton's 2019 remake Dumbo was similarly critiqued for its thin plot and inability to live up to the source material. Unlike these projects, however, The Addams Family is a return to Tim Burton's signature, lovably creepy style, and might be just what he needs to course-correct his career. The Addams Family is inherently attuned to Burton's strengths: it's inherently gothic horror, and is infused with an irreverent dark comedy from the original comics.
The aesthetic in Tim Burton's earlier films such as Batman Returns and Beetlejuice are exactly what the director should bring to The Addams Family: a rougher, less refined version of Tim Burton's aesthetic is perfect for the unconventional family. The Addams Family might be an established franchise, but it doesn't have the sky-high expectations that Burton had to contend with while working with Disney — such as those attached to Dumbo. Burton's looser, more creative approach to his earlier films is what produced his very best work, and that's what been missing from his latest projects. Tim Burton needs to bring an experimental, yet constrained, touch to The Addams Family to reclaim his status as a bankable director and one of Hollywood's best visionary minds.
All eyes are on Tim Burton's reboot of The Addams Family as the project goes further into development. Tim Burton's attachment comes with high expectations, and the audience will be anticipating his distinctly offbeat style. The best version of the show is going to come from the Tim Burton that made Beetlejuice, not the Tim Burton that made Alice in Wonderland — and longtime fans of the director are already hopeful that The Addams Family reboot might finally mark a turning point in Tim Burton's career.