When Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice lands in theaters on September 6th, it will include quite a few returning cast members. There are also a number of notable absences.
Sylvia Sidney passed in 1999, and Glenn Shadix in 2010. Jeffrey Jones won’t be reappearing because… well… you know…
Alec Baldwin also has a couple of issues to work through right now. But how about Geena Davis? She was one of the two principle characters in the first movie. So why not bring her back?
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight she confirms that she isn’t back, and says she understands why:
“No, I’m not. I’m not in the remake. Oh, you were expecting that I would be? Yeah, no, you know what? Because my theory is that ghosts don’t age … Not that I have. Our characters were stuck the way they looked when they died forever, so it’s been a while, its been a minute.”
Michael Keaton’s character can get away with it, we suppose, but with the movie trying to steer clear of CG wherever possible, de-aging is probably out. Also, her and Baldwin’s storyline was kind of done at the end of the first movie.
Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, and Willem Dafoe all-star in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and those who have seen some of the finished film have particularly praised Keaton’s return to the character after 36 years.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice was written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on a story by Gough, Millar, and Seth Grahame-Smith. The sequel has been in some kind of development for decades. Originally it was to be Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian and was planned for 1990.
Jonathan Gems was writing the script back then, and it was said to blend the surfing backdrop of Hawaii with German Expressionism, deliberately because they’re totally wrong together.
The story originally followed the Deetz family moving to Hawaii, where Charles is developing a resort. They soon discover that his company is building on the burial ground of an ancient Hawaiian spirit Kahuna. The spirit comes back from the afterlife to cause trouble.
Beetlejuice eventually becomes a hero by winning a surf contest with magic. Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder agreed to do the film, on the condition that Burton directed, but both he and Keaton dropped out as they were working on Batman Returns.
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