The one with the striped sandworm …
“It’s showtime!”
These words were catnip to me as a kid. For someone who’s admittedly too chicken to watch scary movies as an adult, I was surprisingly obsessed with Beetlejuice at a young age. Released in 1988, this classic helped establish Tim Burton’s signature macabre style all while keeping audiences in stitches. Who else but Burton could’ve dreamed up the afterlife as a bureaucratic nightmare or a “bio-exorcist” title character who constantly cracked crude jokes?
Over 35 years later, Beetlejuice inspired an animated series, a Broadway musical, and a much-awaited film sequel. It feels like Beetlejuice is an old pal by this point.
But did you know …
1. Groucho Marx from hell
Tim Burton fixated on the idea of “Groucho Marx from hell” when creating the character of Beetlejuice. Michael Keaton, on the other hand, is credited for taking that idea and giving it the weird, wacky spin that makes the character utterly memorable. In addition to developing Beetlejuice’s signature look (including the crazy hair and moldy face), Keaton improvised a significant portion of his dialogue during filming.
2. Rat Pack reject
Considering how much Keaton’s original ideas influenced the development of Beetlejuice as a character, it’s clear that another actor may have resulted in a very different movie. In fact, Tim Burton’s first choice for the title role was Rat Pack member Sammy Davis Jr. Producers also floated the idea of casting Dudley Moore or comedian Sam Kinison before Keaton was finally selected for the role.
Other near-castings for Beetlejuice include Sarah Jessica Parker, Molly Ringwald, Brooke Shields, and Jennifer Connelly, all of whom turned down the role of Lydia. Anjelica Huston was originally cast as Delia Deetz, but she had to drop out due to illness.
3. You’re a star!
When I was little, I thought “Beetlejuice” sounded appropriately gross to suit the title character. As it turns out, the name is inspired by a red supergiant star in the Orion constellation called Betelgeuse. This is how the character’s name is actually spelled, as seen on his headstone in the movie.
4. Alternate ending
In the original screenplay, Beetlejuice was supposed to end the movie trapped inside the model town, surrounded by the monstrous sandworms that appeared earlier in the film. But test audiences found him so likeable that they decided to give the character a more lighthearted ending. That’s how Beetlejuice ends up in the afterlife waiting room at the end of the film.
5. Nepo legs
Speaking of that ending in the waiting room, remember the sawed-in-half magician’s assistant who was sitting on the couch? The leg portion was actually played by Tim Burton’s girlfriend at the time.
6. The mystery of the frozen arm
Near the beginning of the movie after the car crash, the Maitlands return home still unaware of their new status as ghosts. Barbara notes that her arm feels frozen, but it’s never explained.
That odd little piece of dialogue is a holdover from the original script, which was much darker. In that version, the car crash is much more graphic. Barbara’s arm is crushed and the couple scream for help as they slowly drown. Yeesh.
7. Lame names
Beetlejuice is such a catchy and kooky name for a movie, but the execs at Warner Bros. didn’t go for it at first. Instead, they wanted to name the film “House Ghost.” Tim Burton wasn’t having it, so he suggested “Scared Sheetless” as a joke title and then was horrified when Warner Bros. briefly considered it!
8. Movie by mail
One of the most surprising pieces of trivia about this horror-comedy classic is its role in the history of Netflix. In March of 1998, almost exactly a decade after its release, Beetlejuice became the very first Netflix DVD mailed to a customer. The company went on to ship over 5 billion discs before shuttering its DVD-by-mail service in 2023.
9. Did you see that?
The TV comedy Community spent years setting up a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it joke based on the movie. “Beetlejuice” was said once in season 1, then once more in season 2. It was only fitting that in season 3’s Halloween episode, someone mentioned “Beetlejuice” again. As the trickster demon is known to do, he appeared once his name was uttered three times. His cameo? Just someone in a Beetlejuice costume walking by in the background. What a callback!
10. Aloha, Beetlejuice!
In 2024, we finally got a sequel: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. But the Beetlejuice sequel rumors had been floating around long before that. In fact, shortly after the original film’s release, Burton came up with an idea for “Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian.” While the first movie had a German Expressionist vibe, this sequel would be styled after classic ‘60s beach movies. The story revolved around Beetlejuice saving the Deetz family after they offended an ancient Hawaiian kahuna. Burton worked on the project for almost a decade before it was scrapped.
Love him or hate him, Beetlejuice’s signature style is still recognizable to this day. Forward this to someone who could totally pull off a black-and-white striped suit.
Editorial: Ashley
Illustration: Nick