Beetlejuice is an American dark fantasy comedy horror media franchise that originated with the film Beetlejuice (1988). The overall plot centers around a deceased couple who try to haunt the new inhabitants of their former home and call for help from a devious bio-exorcist ghost named Betelgeuse (after the star, due to being part of the constellation named after the Greek god Orion, who is famous for his hunting prowess and desire to kill every animal on earth; the name is pronounced and often spelled "Beetlejuice"), who is summoned by saying his name three times. One of the new inhabitants is a young girl, Lydia, who is dealing with her neglectful father and her new step-mother.
| Beetlejuice | |
|---|---|
 Official franchise logo | |
| Created by | Tim Burton |
| Years | 1988–present |
| Films and television | |
| Film(s) |
|
| Animated series | Beetlejuice (1989–1991) |
| Theatrical presentations | |
| Musical(s) | Beetlejuice (2018–present) |
| Games | |
| Video game(s) | List of video games |
| Audio | |
| Soundtrack(s) |
|
The original film was met with critical and commercial success and numerous accolades.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] The franchise expanded with the release of an animated television series, a stage musical, several video games, and an eventual sequel film.
Films
| Film | U.S. release date |
Director | Screenwriters | Story by | Producers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beetlejuice | March 30, 1988 | Tim Burton | Michael McDowell and Warren Skaaren | Michael McDowell & Larry Wilson | Michael Bender, Larry Wilson and Richard Hashimoto |
| Beetlejuice Beetlejuice | September 6, 2024 | Alfred Gough & Miles Millar | Alfred Gough & Miles Millar and Seth Grahame-Smith | Marc Toberoff, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Tommy Harper and Tim Burton |
Beetlejuice (1988)
Beetlejuice is directed by Tim Burton, and written by Michael McDowell, Warren Skaaren, and Larry Wilson.[8][9] Starring Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara, Winona Ryder, and Michael Keaton as the titular character, produced by The Geffen Film Company, and distributed by Warner Bros., the plot revolves around a recently deceased couple; as ghosts, they are not allowed to leave their house. They contact Beetlejuice, an obnoxious and devious "bio-exorcist" from the Netherworld, to scare the home's new inhabitants away.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is directed by Tim Burton from a screenplay by the writing team of Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on a story by Seth Grahame-Smith. Starring Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, Jenna Ortega, Monica Bellucci, and Willem Dafoe, the film was released by Warner Bros. Pictures on September 6, 2024.[10][11]
Television
Beetlejuice (1989–1991)
Due to the film's financial success, a Beetlejuice animated television series was created for ABC. The series ran for four seasons (the final season airing on Fox), from September 9, 1989, to December 6, 1991. Burton served as the show's developer and executive producer.[12]
"Ghost with the Most" (2020)
On October 6, 2020, Beetlejuice guest-starred in the Teen Titans Go! episode "Ghost with the Most", which aired as part of the show's sixth season. In this appearance, he was voiced by Alex Brightman, reprising his role from the Beetlejuice Broadway musical.[13]
Video games
- Adventures of Beetlejuice: Skeletons in the Closet is a video game released for MS-DOS in 1990. It is based on the animated series.
- Beetlejuice is a video game developed by Rare and released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1991.
- Beetlejuice: Horrific Hijinx from the Neitherworld! is a video game created by Rare and published by LJN for the Nintendo Game Boy. It is based on the animated series.
- A Beetlejuice-themed fun pack for the toys-to-life video game Lego Dimensions was released in September 2017. The pack includes a Betelgeuse minifigure and constructable Saturn's Sandworm, and adds a Beetlejuice-themed open-world area and battle arena to the game. In the Beetlejuice-themed open-world area, Betelgeuse is voiced by Christopher Swindle, Adam Maitland is voiced by Jeff Shine, Barbara Maitland and Delia Dietz are voiced by Krizia Bajos, and Harry the Head-Shrunken Hunter is voiced by Tom Kane. Betelgeuse also features prominently in an episode of Teen Titans Go! included as part of the game. In the Teen Titans Go! episode, when the Titans travel to the Lego world, Raven summons Betelgeuse by saying his name three times and gets to go to the Beetlejuice world. Betelgeuse says if Raven wants to win the Lego building competition, she should resort to cheating and use magic, but tricks her into making a giant gargoyle that the Titans have to fight.[14]
- Beetlejuice is represented in the platform fighter MultiVersus as part of its second season, with Christopher Swindle reprising his role.[15]
Print content associated with the franchise includes a six-issue comic book series published by Harvey Comics in 1991 and 1992, featuring adventures of Beetlejuice and Lydia along the lines of those in the animated series; a Marvel Comics guide containing "stories, comic strips, fact files, and puzzles", and a series of juvenile novels published by Aladdin Paperbacks in 1992.[16]
Stage musical
In 2016, work began on a Broadway stage musical adaptation of the film directed by Alex Timbers, produced by Warner Bros., with music and lyrics by Eddie Perfect and book by Scott Brown and Anthony King. The musical was debuted by readings starring Christopher Fitzgerald, Kris Kukul (musical director), and Connor Gallagher (choreographer).[17] It premiered at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C. for a limited run from October 14 to November 18, 2018, with Alex Brightman in the title role.[18]
The production was scheduled to play its final performance at the Winter Garden on June 6, 2020. The producers were unable to find another theater to house the show due to the COVID Broadway shutdown in March 2020. The show reopened at the Marquis Theatre on April 8, 2022, and closed on January 8, 2023,[19] at a financial loss, having been unable to recoup its $21 million investment.[19] Subsequent productions opened across the world, including a North American national tour.
Main cast and characters
This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in more than two films in the series.
- An empty, dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
- A indicates an appearance through archival footage or audio.
- C indicates a cameo role.
- P indicates an appearance in onscreen photographs.
- V indicates a voice-only role.
- Y indicates a younger version of the character.
| Character | Films | Television series | Stage musical | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beetlejuice | Beetlejuice Beetlejuice | Beetlejuice | "Ghost with the Most" | ||
| 1988 | 2024 | 1989–1991 | 2020 | 2018–2022 | |
| Betelgeuse Beetlejuice |
Michael Keaton | Stephen Ouimette | Alex Brightman | ||
| Lydia Deetz | Winona Ryder | Alyson Court | Sophia Anne Caruso | ||
| Delia Deetz | Catherine O'Hara | Elizabeth Hanna | Leslie Kritzer | ||
| Charles Deetz | Jeffrey Jones | Mark Heenhan Charlie HopkinsonV Jeffrey JonesP |
Roger Dunn | Adam Dannheisser | |
| Adam Maitland | Alec Baldwin | Mentioned | Rob McClure | ||
| Barbara Maitland | Geena Davis | Kerry Butler | |||
| Juno Butterfield | Sylvia Sidney | Jill Abramovitz | |||
| Miss Argentina | Patrice Martinez | Leslie Kritzer | |||
| Maxie Dean | Robert Goulet | Mentioned | Danny Rutigliano | ||
| Otho Fenlock | Glenn Shadix | Kelvin Moon | |||
| Sarah Dean | Maree Cheatham | ||||
| Jane Butterfield | Rachel MittelmanY | Amy Nuttall | |||
| Astrid Deetz | Jenna Ortega | ||||
| Rory | Justin Theroux[20] | ||||
| Delores | Mentioned | Monica Bellucci | |||
| Wolf Jackson | Willem Dafoe | ||||
| Father Damien | Burn Gorman | ||||
| Bob | Nick Kellington | ||||
| Jeremy Frazier | Arthur Conti | ||||
| Richard | Santiago Cabrera | ||||
| The Janitor | Danny DeVitoC | ||||
| Vlad | Filipe CatesC | ||||
Additional crew and production details
| Title | Crew/detail | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Composer | Cinematographer | Editors | Production companies |
Distributing company |
Running time | ||
| Beetlejuice | Danny Elfman | Thomas E. Ackerman | Jane Kurson | The Geffen Film Company | Warner Bros. Pictures | 1 hr 32 mins | |
| Beetlejuice Beetlejuice | Haris Zambarloukos | Jay Prychidny | Plan B Entertainment Tim Burton Productions |
1 hr 45 mins | |||
Release and reception
Critical response
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | CinemaScore |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beetlejuice | 83% (115 reviews)[21] | 71/100 (19 reviews)[22] | B[23] |
| Beetlejuice Beetlejuice | 77% (261 reviews)[24] | 62/100 (58 reviews)[25] | B+[23] |
Box office performance
| Film | Box office gross | Budget | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America | Other territories | Worldwide | |||
| Beetlejuice | $74,493,906 | $618,753 | $75,112,659 | $15 million | [26][27] |
| Beetlejuice Beetlejuice | $188,006,079 | $76,300,000 | $264,306,079 | $100 million | [28][29] |
| Totals | $262,499,985 | $76,918,753 | $339,418,738 | $115 million | |
References
- ^ "The 61st Academy Awards". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on September 4, 2023. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
- ^ "Achievement in Special Effects: 1988". British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Archived from the original on May 31, 2012. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
- ^ "Make-Up Artist: 1988". British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Archived from the original on May 31, 2012. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
- ^ "Past Saturn Awards". Saturn Awards. Archived from the original on April 4, 2007. Retrieved 2010-06-13.
- ^ "1989 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. Archived from the original on June 12, 2010. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
- ^ "AFI's 100 YEARS...100 LAUGHS". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on June 15, 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-18.
- ^ "AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs" (PDF). American Film Institute. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 16, 2013. Retrieved August 28, 2016.
- ^ Erickson, Hal. "Beetlejuice (1988)". Allmovie. Archived from the original on July 19, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2012.
- ^ Nero, Dom (October 11, 2018). "Beetlejuice Is a Horror-Fantasy-Comedy Hybrid Above All Categorization". Esquire. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
- ^ Rosenbloom, Alli (November 30, 2023). "Tim Burton says 'Beetlejuice 2' has officially wrapped production". CNN. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
- ^ Vivarelli, Nick (November 26, 2023). "Willem Dafoe Back on Festival Trail in Marrakech, Talks 'Poor Things', Reveals Role in 'Beetlejuice 2'". Variety. Archived from the original on November 26, 2023. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
- ^ Salisbury, Mark; Burton, Tim (2006). Burton on Burton. Faber and Faber. p. 100. ISBN 0-571-22926-3.
- ^ "VIDEO: Alex Brightman Plays an Animated BEETLEJUICE On Last Night's TEEN TITANS GO!". October 6, 2020. Archived from the original on October 10, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ Osborn, Alex (May 31, 2017). "Teen Titans Go!, The Powerpuff Girls and Beetlejuice Packs Coming to LEGO Dimensions". Archived from the original on July 5, 2017. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
- ^ MultiVersus -Official Samurai Jack "It Is Time" Gameplay Trailer. July 20, 2024. Retrieved July 20, 2024 – via YouTube.
- ^ Samuel J. Umland, The Tim Burton Encyclopedia (2015), p. 35.
- ^ "The Beetlejuice Musical Finds Its Writing Team | Playbill". Playbill. March 29, 2017. Archived from the original on June 15, 2017. Retrieved May 31, 2017.
- ^ "Beetlejuice Musical Sets Spring 2019 Broadway Opening Date | Playbill". Playbill. September 13, 2018. Archived from the original on December 19, 2018. Retrieved September 14, 2018.
- ^ a b Paulson, Michael (September 20, 2022). "'Beetlejuice' to Close on Broadway". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
- ^ Romano, Nick (March 20, 2024). "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice... Beetlejuice returns in first look at Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
- ^ "Beetlejuice (1988)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
- ^ "Beetlejuice Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
- ^ a b "CinemaScore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on September 5, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
- ^ "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
- ^ "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
- ^ "Beetlejuice". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
- ^ "Beetlejuice (1988) - Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
- ^ "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved September 15, 2024.
- ^ "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024) - Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved September 15, 2024.