After 36 years, the juice is loose once again.
“Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice,” the anticipated sequel to “Beetlejuice,” originally released in 1988, will be released in theaters on Sept. 6 of this year. The film, which features stars such as Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder and Jenna Ortega, will bring many of the original characters back together “after an unexpected tragedy,” per the trailer’s synopsis.
“Three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia’s life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid, discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened.”
The synopsis continues, “With trouble brewing in both realms, it’s only a matter of time until someone says Beetlejuice’s name three times and the mischievous demon returns to unleash his very own brand of mayhem.”
Who is Betelgeuse?
Betelgeuse is the technically correct spelling of the main character’s name, per Screen Rant. However, the pronunciation is still “Beetlejuice,” which makes it simple for characters to say his name and summon him.
Betelgeuse — or Beetlejuice — was depicted in the first film as “a manipulative spirit seeking to exploit the living to achieve his own goals: returning to the land of the living and wreaking havoc,” as the Deseret News previously reported.
The trailer opens with characters Lydia (Ryder), Astrid (Ortega), and Delia Deetz (Catherine O’Hara) standing next to each other at a funeral. The death of Charles Deetz is responsible for bringing the other Deetz family members back to Winter River.
“When I was a teenager, a trickster demon terrorized our entire family and tried to force me to marry him,” says Lydia. Later, much to Lydia’s horror, her daughter Astrid summons Betelgeuse by saying his name three times.
The rest of the trailer reveals a series of characters and scenes — some familiar, others new.
Willem Dafoe, for example, plays a ghost detective named Wolf Jackson. Monica Bellucci is Beetlejuice’s wife, per The Hollywood Reporter, and Justin Theroux, known for his roles in “The Leftovers” and “Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi,” will be playing a character named Rory.
The trailer also hints at recognizable landscapes and creatures from the first movie, including the iconic sandworms and Adam Maitland’s miniature model town.
When will the sequel come out?
The movie will come out in early September. According to Cosmopolitan, “although it’s still a few months away, a fall release is perfect for what is sure to become a Halloween-season movie.”
While Lydia and Delia Deetz are both characters from “Beetlejuice,” Lydia’s daughter Astrid — played by Jenna Ortega — is new. When asked to describe her character, Ortega told Vanity Fair, “I wouldn’t say she’s bright and sunny at all. She doesn’t go to the opposite end of the spectrum, but any kid who becomes a teenager wants to be removed from their parents.
“I think they instantly just fight whatever it is that their parent loves,” Ortega continued. “So I think it’s a little bit of that. I’m not wearing pink and a cheerleader, but I am a little bit against my mom’s history or past. We butt heads quite a bit.”
Michael Keaton expressed significant excitement about reprising his role. He told Empire in March 2023 that “(Burton) and I were talking about it years and years ago, never telling anybody. I said, ‘if it happens, first of all, we’ve both said we’re doing it many times.’”
Keaton continued, “We both agreed, if it happens, it has to be done as close to the way we made it the first time. Making stuff up, making stuff happen, improvising and riffing, but literally handmade stuff like people creating things with their hands and building something.”