Christina Ricci (born February 12, 1980) is an
American actress, who began her acting career appearing in commercials and received early recognition as a child star. Her debut performance in
Mermaids (1990) was followed by a breakthrough role as
Wednesday Addams in
The Addams Family (1991) and its sequel
Addams Family Values (1993) when she was eleven and thirteen years old, respectively. Following her success with the
Addams Family films, she earned somewhat of a "
teen icon" status thanks to appearances in various big budget productions, notably
Now and Then (1995) and
Casper (1995), which were marketed for younger audiences before making a successful transition into adult-oriented roles with the art house drama
The Ice Storm (1997) at the age of seventeen.