Netflix brings Wednesday's black tears to life through eerie Grand Canal activation

Manila’s usually romantic Venice Grand Canal Mall took on a darker charm as Netflix conjured an activation inspired by the gothic world of Wednesday. To mark the show’s second season, Netflix and creative agency GIGIL reimagined one of Wednesday Addams’ most haunting traits - her black tears - and brought it to life in the middle of one of the city’s busiest leisure spots.

In the new chapter, Wednesday Addams (played by Jenna Ortega) finds her powers spiralling beyond control, with her black tears symbolising both exhaustion and danger. GIGIL translated that emotional unraveling into a tangible spectacle, aptly titled “Black tears.”

Over two days, a towering portrait of Wednesday loomed above the canal, her inky tears mirrored below as an eco-friendly black dye crept into the water. The transformation turned the 650-foot waterway into a river of darkness - a surreal contrast against the mall’s pastel façades and gondola rides. By the activation’s close, the water had been carefully filtered back to crystal clarity, leaving only stunned shoppers - and a flood of viral videos - behind.

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The transformation quickly went viral, drawing over 145,000 engagements and capturing the curiosity of both mall visitors and online audiences. Soon after, Wednesday season two became Netflix’s #1 show globally for three consecutive weeks.

“We safely spread the character’s black tears through one of Manila’s most romantic streams, literally spreading her woe,” said Brandon Talip, copywriter at GIGIL. “It was a striking way to mark Wednesday’s return, and drive curiosity and engagement from the target audience both at the mall and virally through social conversations.”

The haunting spectacle merged pop culture, location-based marketing, and environmental storytelling - a testament to the creative leadership of Badong Abesamis and Herbert Hernandez, chief creative officers at GIGIL, working closely with Netflix Philippines’ marketing team led by Stef Pajarito.

Founded in Manila in 2017, GIGIL has rapidly emerged as one of Asia’s most awarded independent agencies, known for its bold, culture-shaping work. The agency recently expanded to New York and Toronto, continuing its mission to deliver “unexpected ideas that lead to unexpected results.”

Netflix debuted in the Philippines on 7 January 2016, as part of a major global rollout that extended the streaming service’s reach to 130 additional countries. As of 2024, it is estimated to have around 2.71 million subscribers in the Philippines, according to data from FlixPatrol.

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