In the shadowy halls of Nevermore Academy, where outcasts thrive and secrets simmer like a witch’s brew, the off-screen banter between Wednesday stars Jenna Ortega and Hunter Doohan has burst into the spotlight with a sizzle that’s equal parts hilarious and heated. During a candid appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon this week, Doohan—fresh off filming Season 2’s blood-soaked twists—revealed that his co-star Ortega has a penchant for roasting him with a pun-tastic barb: repeatedly joking about setting him ablaze and dubbing him an “LGBBQ.” The quip, a cheeky mashup of LGBTQ+ and barbecue, has fans cackling, critics pondering celebrity humor’s edges, and social media ablaze in a frenzy of memes, defenses, and debates.
The revelation came amid a lighthearted segment where Fallon prompted Doohan, 30, to dish on the “weirdest” behind-the-scenes moments from the Netflix juggernaut’s sophomore season. Wednesday, Tim Burton’s macabre Addams Family spin-off, shattered records upon its 2022 debut, amassing 1.7 billion viewing hours and snagging four Emmys, including Outstanding Comedy Series. Ortega’s deadpan portrayal of the eponymous braids-and-black Wednesday catapulted her to A-list stardom, while Doohan’s Tyler Galpin evolved from barista crush to monstrous Hyde, blending boy-next-door charm with feral fury. As production wrapped Part 2 of Season 2—set for a split release in January and April 2026—the duo’s rapport has become the stuff of set lore, a far cry from their characters’ tortured tango.
“I mean, Jenna’s got this razor-sharp wit—it’s Wednesday off-screen too,” Doohan chuckled, his boyish grin belying the intensity of his on-set transformations. “We’ve been through the wringer: fake blood, wire work, those insane practical effects for the Hyde reveals. But every time we’re waiting for a reset, she’ll lean in and go, ‘You know, Hunter, if I could, I’d just light you up and call it an LGBBQ.’ And she’s cracking up, eyes sparkling like she’s plotting world domination.” The audience erupted, Fallon slapping his desk in delight, but the clip—posted to the show’s YouTube channel—quickly snowballed into viral gold, racking up 12 million views in 48 hours. Doohan, married to Your Honor co-star Froy Gutierrez since 2022, emphasized the affection: “It’s all love. She’s like a little sister who knows exactly how to get under your skin—in the best way.”
Ortega, 23, has built a brand on unfiltered candor, from her viral Hot Ones tears to her vocal stances on labor rights during Wednesday‘s strikes-delayed shoot. In a pre-taped response aired on Fallon‘s after-show, she owned the gag with her signature smirk: “Guilty as charged. Hunter’s too pretty to stay un-roasted. Plus, in this heat—filming in Romania’s summers? Someone’s gotta fan the flames.” Her delivery, laced with that signature Ortega irony, diffused any potential sting, but the pun’s layered punch—nodding to Doohan’s open queer identity while evoking a backyard cookout—struck a chord in a cultural moment hyper-tuned to celebrity allyship and microaggressions.
The timing couldn’t be more serendipitous, or chaotic. Wednesday Season 2, budgeted at a whopping $250 million, amps up the gothic horror with new foes like a vengeful Pilgrim ghost (Catherine Zeta-Jones in dual roles) and Enid’s (Emma Myers) werewolf glow-up. Doohan’s Tyler, post-Hyde imprisonment, returns as a reluctant informant, chained in a bunker scene that’s already teasing fan-favorite “roasts” from Wednesday herself. As Ortega told Variety in October, “The insults this season? They’re elevated—Wednesday’s got a thesaurus now.” Yet, Doohan’s anecdote flips the script, humanizing the powerhouse production with glimpses of levity amid 16-hour days and Burton’s whimsical directives (think: dancing Thing puppets and fog machines on steroids).
Social media, ever the inferno, lit up faster than a match to dry tinder. #LGBBQ exploded on X, TikTok, and Instagram, spawning 3.2 million posts overnight. Fans hailed it as “peak queer humor,” with edits splicing the Fallon clip over barbecue grills and rainbow flags— one viral TikTok by creator @queerqueencooks, viewed 8 million times, recreated the joke with drag flair: “Honey, if you’re serving looks like Hunter, you deserve a slow roast!” Memes proliferated: Photoshopped images of Doohan as a sizzling steak next to Ortega’s Wednesday wielding a lighter, captioned “When your co-star clocks your vibe.” LGBTQ+ influencers like @patthegay amplified it as “affectionate trolling at its finest,” drawing parallels to iconic duos like Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively’s banter.
But not all flames were friendly fires. A vocal minority decried the pun as “edgy at best, harmful at worst,” accusing Ortega of punching sideways at queer culture. Threads on Reddit’s r/WednesdayTVSeries dissected it ad nauseam: “Is this reclaimed humor or just lazy wordplay? Hunter’s laughing, but…” one top post queried, netting 2,500 upvotes and 400 comments. GLAAD issued a measured statement: “Humor thrives on context—here, it’s clearly consensual ribbing between friends. But intent matters; let’s celebrate the joy without the scorch.” Doohan, sensing the ripple, followed up on his Instagram Stories: “Y’all, Jenna’s my ride-or-die. This is how we survive the crypt—by burning bright together. No ashes, just laughs.” Gutierrez, Doohan’s husband, chimed in with a heart-eyes emoji under a repost, quashing rumors of on-set jealousy that have dogged the pair since Season 1’s chemistry reads.
Ortega’s track record adds nuance. The Scream VI scream queen has been a fierce advocate, donating $500,000 to Palestinian relief in 2024 and calling out Hollywood’s queerbaiting in a GQ profile: “Representation isn’t a punchline—it’s a promise.” Her “LGBBQ” jabs, Doohan clarified, stem from an inside joke born during Season 1’s quarantine bubble: “We were all cooped up, bingeing RuPaul’s Drag Race. Jenna quipped it first when I burned the microwave popcorn. Stuck ever since.” Myers, Enid’s portrayer, corroborated in a Cosmo sidebar: “Jenna’s roasts are equal-opportunity. She once called me ‘Enid Allergy’ after I sneezed through a take. Keeps us humble.”
This isn’t the first time Wednesday‘s cast has blurred lines between script and spontaneity. Recall Ortega’s infamous ad-libbing of Wednesday’s dance— a viral sensation that boosted the finale’s views by 40%. Or Doohan’s directorial debut, the short The River Styx, which screened at Tribeca and nodded to queer coming-of-age tales. Their rapport mirrors the show’s ethos: outcasts finding family in the freakish. As Burton told The Hollywood Reporter, “These kids? They’re the real magic. Jenna’s got fire; Hunter’s got heart. Together? Unstoppable.”
The buzz has ripple effects beyond the watercooler. Netflix, riding high on Wednesday‘s $2 billion merch empire (from Thing plushies to Nevermore hoodies), teased extended-universe teases: a Wednesday mobile game with user-generated roasts and a potential Outcasts spin-off centering Tyler’s redemption. Ratings projections for Season 2? Analysts at Nielsen forecast 1.2 billion hours in the first month, buoyed by the cast’s off-screen charisma. “In a sea of scripted promo, this feels raw,” says IndieWire‘s Kate Erbland. “Ortega and Doohan’s dynamic? It’s the secret sauce keeping Wednesday from going stale.”
Yet, the incident underscores broader tensions in celeb culture’s comedy conundrum. Post-Dave Chappelle backlash and Jo Koy’s Golden Globes flub, where’s the line between banter and bite? Comedians like Hannah Gadsby, in her Netflix special Nanette, have long probed such edges, but for Gen Z icons like Ortega, the stakes are stratospheric—every tweet a tightrope. Doohan’s share, though, lands as a win for authenticity: a reminder that even in Burton’s gothic gloom, laughter’s the best exorcism.
As Wednesday Part 2 looms, fans are left salivating for more—will Ortega’s barbs make the blooper reel? For now, the “LGBBQ” lore cements their status as Hollywood’s hottest platonic power duo. In a town full of facades, their fire feels refreshingly real. Just don’t light the grill without marshmallows.
