‘I Remembered The Spirit Of It’: Tim Burton Didn’t Watch Original Beetlejuice Film Before Preparing For Sequel

Even though there were plans for a sequel to the cult classic 1988 horror comedy Beetlejuice, it took over three decades for the idea to materialize. Director Tim Burton did not revisit the original film before working on the sequel.

Burton did not feel the need to delve deep into the source material to generate ideas for the sequel, which was set 35 years after the events of Beetlejuice. “I didn’t watch the first movie to prepare for this. I remembered the spirit of it and I remembered everybody here,” he said in an interview with Variety.

The renowned director emphasized that he did not intend to make a sequel just for the sake of it but rather sought a natural connection to the project. Burton confessed that he had felt “lost” at a certain point in his life, and Beetlejuice became a source of “reenergizing” his spirits and reconnecting with his passion for filmmaking.

Despite recreating the eerie world of Beetlejuice in a technologically advanced setting, Burton chose to stick with practical effects rather than CGI. “It was great. That’s what gave the film its energy,” he mentioned in an interview with Collider.

The set required new elements every day, which was challenging with live effects but achievable. Burton had an “effects team” who could create these elements quickly. He stressed that this approach was essential in capturing the energy, spontaneity, and enjoyment of filmmaking.

“We just wanted to not think about ‘sequel’ or franchise, anything, just go and make the movie,” Burton added. The highly anticipated Beetlejuice sequel reunited original characters like Michael Keaton’s Beetlejuice, Catherine O’Hara’s Delia, and Winona Ryder’s Lydia, along with newcomers like Jenna Ortega as Astrid Deetz.

Astrid, Lydia’s defiant daughter, defies her mother’s warning and summons Beetlejuice by saying his name three times. The Ghost with the Most returns to the Deetz family to cause chaos! More will be revealed when the film hits theaters on September 6.