Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice 2 Is Officially Doubling Down On One Of The Original Movie’s Funniest Jokes

Michael Keaton’s recent comments about Beetlejuice 2 reveal that the long-awaited sequel is reviving a hilarious gag from the original movie and making it even better. Set to premiere in theaters on September 6, 2024, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is bringing the iconic characters from Tim Burton’s 1988 horror-comedy, Beetlejuice, back to the big screen after 36 years. In addition to Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O’Hara reprising their respective roles as Beetlejuice, Lydia Deetz, and Delia Deetz, Tim Burton’s sequel is also now confirmed to be reviving some of the original film’s classic afterlife jokes.

When discussing his return to the titular character after over three decades with People, Michael Keaton revealed his condition that practical effects would need to be prioritized over CGI in order for him to come back for Beetlejuice 2. Keaton confirmed that he and Burton agreed early on about Beetlejuice 2’s practical effects focus, with the actor even describing a specific example from the upcoming sequel. The scene that Keaton teases happens to be a callback to a gag from Beetlejuice’s original ending, with these new details revealing that the sequel is doubling down on the joke for his character.

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Beetlejuice 2 Is Reviving The Original Movie’s Shrunken Head Gag (& Making It Way More Extreme)

Elaborating on why he enjoys practical effects more than CGI, Keaton explained, “What made it fun was watching somebody in the corner actually holding something up for you, to watch everybody in the shrunken head room and say, ‘Those are people under there, operating these things.’” The shrunken head room didn’t exist in 1988’s Beetlejuice, but the concept of characters having shrunken heads was among its most memorable gags. One of the ghosts featured in Beetlejuice’s Neitherworld waiting room was Harry the Hunter, whose head had been shrunken after death. At the end of the movie, Beetlejuice angered the Witch Doctor ghost and received the same punishment.

The new tease that Beetlejuice 2 features an entire room dedicated to ghosts with shrunken heads is thus a great continuation of the original horror-comedy’s ending gag. Not only will Beetlejuice likely still have a shrunken head when he returns, but the sequel will seemingly reveal a whole slew of other ghosts with the same condition. This gag’s continuation means that the Witch Doctor has shrunk the heads of far more ghosts than just Beetlejuice and Harry the Hunter over the years, getting to the extreme point where an entire room in the Neitherworld was dedicated to them.

The Shrunken Head Room Tease Is Great News For Beetlejuice’s Afterlife Worldbuilding

Michael Keaton’s shrunken head room tease means that Beetlejuice 2 will be exploring plenty more of the afterlife’s world, which was only briefly traversed through in the original movie. The 1988 film saw Adam and Barbara enter the Neitherworld to meet with their caseworker, Juno, where they saw the waiting room, her office, the reception area, and a “lost souls” room. With Keaton confirming the existence of a shrunken head room in the Neitherworld as well as Willem Dafoe revealing that his new character is an afterlife detective, Beetlejuice 2 won’t disappoint when it comes to expanding on the franchise’s spooky world.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is the sequel to the original Tim Burton classic that starred Michael Keaton and Wynona Rider in a horror-comedy that involved ghosts trying to scare off new homebuyers from taking their house. The sequel brings back Michael Keaton as the hilarious and sleazy ghost with selfish intentions, now joined by Jenna Ortega in a new role.

Release Date

September 6, 2024

Distributor(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures