Do you prefer? The original or Raul Julia in the Addams Family movies?

Since I grew up in the 1960s watching the Addams Family, I am biased towards the original, John Astin!

I grew up watching the Addams Family fims first because I'm only 21. I hadn't seen much of the original or I was too young to remember the reruns. Raul Julia was perfect for the film, he was my favorite, but after becoming familiar with the original just last year, I have to say I don't know. John Astin made the character and I'm leaning more towards him now. I don't think I could really choose. John must recieve credit for creating such a creative character.

As far as I'm concerned John Astin IS Gomez. The Gomez in the movies is based on the the cartoon versions, I think so they're not really tied in with eachother, but I like the OLD tv show's version better, it seems that the movies lost EVERYTHING the Addam's Family stood for.

I would have to disagree, respectfully of course. I love the original, I have all the episodes on VCD and have seen them more times than I can remember. I even have The Addams Chronicles book. But I felt the movies lived up to the original in every way. There was the same feeling of family and love as the original, it was just more serious and dark. It had a different tone. Many of the gestures of the characters were the same as in the TV show, except for maybe Wednsday and Pugsley. The film version stands for everything the original stood for, and then some in my opinion.

I never saw the movies, but I don't see how there could be another Gomez as good as John Astin. He was just delightfully goofy and hilarious.

John Astin without a doubt, as well as Carolyn Jones as Morticha... in fact ALL the characters in the TV show over the movies.

Problem is the movies took themselves too seriously.

That is what made the TV show so delicious... yes they did it seriously, but you never had the slightest doubt that toungue was planted firmly in cheek and all were just having a lot of fun... where as the movies were just dull, forced, and lifeless by comparisson.

I would say the same thing of My Favorite Martian, though it was even worse and less similar to the original.
And again on TV it was something Ray Walston and Bill Bixby seemed to be just, having a lot of fun with.

Christopher Lloyd is a great actor and could have done it that way (He was great in the BTTF movies) but he or the producers just lost all realization of what MFM was.