Michael Keaton admitted that he was a little nervous to return to his titular role in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. He was 37 when he played the role for the first time in the critical and commercial success. However, when the sequel was in the works, Keaton was well into his 70s and was concerned that he couldn’t deliver with the same energy.
On the contrary, director Tim Burton shared that it was Keaton who gave the film its energy. Besides Keaton, Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara reprised their roles from the first film. The film also brought in new cast members, including Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, Jenna Ortega, and Willem Dafoe.
Michael Keaton Explains Why He Was Nervous To Return To Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice / Betelgeuse, the mischievous demon played by Michael Keaton, is returning to the screens to scare a new generation of kids. Keaton recently appeared for a promotional interview with Collider and opened up about his nervousness about returning to the role. The host asked whether there was a single aspect of playing the character again that made him doubt himself.
Keaton explained that filmmaking was a process that required a lot of energy and focus and it was generally fast-paced. He returned to the role after more than three decades and he was unsure if he could keep up with everything. When he got to the studio at Culver City, he only had one goal to avoid getting overwhelmed.
He was determined that he was going to do exactly what he did in the first film. Interestingly, Tim Burton, who had worked with him on the first film, was fully on board with this plan. Keaton shared with Collider:
In filmmaking, you got to keep up a level of energy and pace and focus. I didn’t know what the vibe was going to be or the process was going to be. We shot in the little studio down at Culver City, cool old legendary kind of place. When I went over there, you don’t know how it’s going to work or what the pace of things is going to be. I just went in saying, ‘Well, I’m just going to do what we did the first time as close as I can.’ And Tim [Burton] had already seen it. It was just totally clear in his head.
Michael Keaton hyped up his film, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, earlier this year when he appeared on The Jess Cagle Show. He revealed that while he expected the film to be fun and visually exciting, he wasn’t ready for the emotional elements in the film.
Tim Burton Says Michael Keaton Gave Beetlejuice 2 Its Energy
While Michael Keaton was nervous about keeping up with the energy of the set, Tim Burton shared that Keaton’s energy was crucial to the sequel film. Burton shared with Collider that they made up stuff every day for the film, which was challenging with all the practical effects. Burton shared that the conversations with Keaton were crucial to the spirit of the film. Burton told Collider:
It was great. That’s what gave the film its energy. We make up stuff every day, which is kind of hard to do when you’re dealing with all live effects, but we did it. I worked with these effects people who, in the spirit of the movie, would make these things very quickly. But Michael and I talked about this from the very beginning, that that was very important to the spirit, especially with all the technology to do all this stuff and whatever.
According to the plot of the film, Jenna Ortega’s Astrid, daughter of Winona Ryder’s Lydia, discovers the mysterious model of the town in the Deetz family house’s attic (via Deadline). She accidentally opens the portal to the Afterlife and comes face to face with the mischievous demon played by Keaton.
The film is penned by the writing duo of Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on a story by Seth Grahame-Smith. For the writers, the challenge was to carry the essence of the 1988 film but also make it relatable to modern audiences.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is scheduled for theatrical release on September 6, 2024. Beetlejuice is currently available to watch on Max.
