Gwendoline Christie Just Admitted That Her "Wednesday" Character, Larissa Weems, Was The First Time She Felt "Beautiful On Screen," And It Kind Of Broke My Heart

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Gwendoline Christie has starred in several big-name projects ranging from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay to Game of Thrones, and for the first time in her career, she finally feels seen.

Gwendoline smiling
Gregg Deguire / WireImage / Getty Images

Gwendoline plays Nevermore Academy's principal, Larissa Weems, in the new Netflix series Wednesday. And in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, she revealed how the role made her feel "beautiful."

  Vlad Cioplea/Netflix
Vlad Cioplea/Netflix

Director Tim Burton gave Gwendoline freedom to help create her Larissa Weems character, as well as Larissa's characteristics. This helped Gwendoline put more of herself into the role.

  Mike Marsland / Mike Marsland / WireImage / Getty Images
Mike Marsland / Mike Marsland / WireImage / Getty Images

"He said, 'You can do whatever you like with the character, feel free to make it whatever you want and we'll keep talking about it,'" Gwendoline told EW about her conversation with Tim.

<div><p>"And that was an unbelievable opportunity from this great cinematic master."</p></div><span> Amy Sussman / The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images</span>

"And that was an unbelievable opportunity from this great cinematic master."

Amy Sussman / The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images

"What kept coming to me was this idea of this Hitchcock-style heroine, this screen siren, that maybe that young woman would look to our mystic portal, the cinema, to be an incarnation of her fantasies. And weirdly, Tim had exactly the same idea and so did [costume designer] Colleen Atwood."

  Vlad Cioplea/Netflix
Vlad Cioplea/Netflix

Gwendoline looked at iconic actors like Tippi Hedren and Kim Novak for inspiration. She admitted that she likes to transform into characters and people who are the complete opposite of herself. This was her chance to embody the "classic idea of femininity" with a twist.

  Kate Green / Getty Images for BFI
Kate Green / Getty Images for BFI

"Hitchcock heroines tend to have all sorts of trauma being exacted upon them, for this to be a woman who was in charge of her own fate, who was ruthlessly ambitious and who was willingly putting herself into dangerous and extreme situations, was exciting to me."

  Vlad Cioplea/Netflix
Vlad Cioplea/Netflix

"It is the first time I've ever felt beautiful on screen," she added. "I cannot express my extreme gratitude more heartily to Tim and Colleen and our hair and makeup team. Colleen Atwood is rightfully a legend, and what she does is close to witchcraft in terms of transformation. It is an honor of my life to work with Colleen and to work with Tim."

  Vlad Cioplea/Netflix
Vlad Cioplea/Netflix

Gwendoline admitted that Colleen made her body feel "celebrated and beautiful." Colleen never once made her feel insecure about her body or that there was something to be ashamed of.

  Gilbert Carrasquillo / GC Images / Getty Images
Gilbert Carrasquillo / GC Images / Getty Images

And they did a fabulous job of bringing the character to life! To learn more about Gwendoline and Wednesday, check out her full interview with Entertainment Weekly.

Also, can I just add that I love hearing stories like this? Everyone deserves to feel good about themselves, and although I was initially sad to hear this was her first time feeling "beautiful on screen," I couldn't be happier that the moment finally happened to her AND that she did it on her own terms.