29 May 2020
Marco Gandolfi
Hollywood is well and truly in the age of remakes and reboots, constantly churning out beloved films and franchises from decades past. Ghostbusters, Top Gun, and Blade Runner have all been brought back in recent years, and top executives are pondering what other films would evoke nostalgia while still attracting new audiences today. One of the most iconic movies of the 1980s was Beetlejuice, the Tim Burton-directed classic starring Michael Keaton as the eponymous character. There has long been talk of a potential sequel, and now it looks as though one could be in the pipeline. Burton has made a vast number of legendary and loved movies over the years, from Edward Scissorhands to Big Fish. But when it comes to fan polls about the California-born director’s most beloved work, his second ever film regularly tops the charts.
Beetlejuice was a critical and commercial success at the time of its 1988 release, and it has gone on to be talked about as one of the best films from that time period for many years since.
The devious poltergeist, Betelgeuse, was one of Keaton’s finest performances, and it would be great to see the veteran actor reprise that role. Other actors from the film, including Winona Ryder, have said that they would be interested in taking part in a sequel. The question is, would a sequel be a success?
One of the main things to consider when rebooting a franchise is how well it will go down with today’s viewers. Simply bringing back people who watched the original film won’t generate enough revenue. This can be helped if the film or franchise is already present in other media, though. Beetlejuice has a head start here.
Burton had discussed the possibility of a sequel in the early 1990s, and at the time had been adamant that it had to be called, Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian. Keaton apparently agreed to star in the film but both the actor and director supposedly got distracted with Batman Returns and it never came to fruition. Other ideas have been tossed around over the years, but now it appears as though a sequel really could be in the works. The fires of speculation were stoked recently when Danny Elfman, the composer of the original, tweeted a teaser about how he would open a Beetlejuice sequel.
Burton is remaining tight-lipped about a potential Beetlejuice 2, but in the age of remakes it would be a prime time to release it. There is likely to be a huge older audience eager for nostalgia, and also a younger demographic that have grown up with the film. This is sequel prediction, in particular, is one that a lot of people will be hoping comes true.