From their previous roles to their personal lives, here’s what to know about the cast of the 'Beetlejuice' sequel, premiering in September 2024
After decades of anticipation, Beetlejuice 2 is finally making its way to theaters, bringing back the whimsical horror-comedy that made the original film a cult classic. With Tim Burton taking the helm as director, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will revive beloved characters while introducing new faces to the eerie town of Winter River.
The 1988 original starred Michael Keaton as the crude and mischievous ghost, Beetlejuice, and Winona Ryder as Lydia Deetz, an artistic and goth teenager with a fascination for the paranormal. Now, in the film’s reprise, three generations of the Deetz family return to Winter River following a family tragedy, per the film’s synopsis. New to the narrative is Lydia's rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega), who accidentally opens a portal to the underworld, unleashing chaos.
However, Burton wants fans to know that the upcoming film is “not a sequel” in the traditional sense.
“It’s just revisiting what happened to these characters,” the director told The Times in November 2023. “It was based on liking the Lydia character. It’s like 35-Up — what happens 35 years later? Where are these people? Does Lydia have a family? What life path did she take? We all go through that as you get older. It just made it much more its own movie in a way.”
As a returning member of the original cast, Keaton expressed admiration for Burton’s intentionality with his craft, particularly one element he thinks gets overlooked.
“Tim’s a terrific caster,” Keaton told Harper’s Bazaar in July 2024. “He doesn’t always get credit for that, but if you look through his films, he always casts really, really well.”
The star-studded cast includes returning favorites like Keaton, Ryder and Catherine O'Hara, alongside newcomers Ortega, Willem Dafoe, Monica Bellucci and Justin Theroux. Set to release on Sept. 6, 2024, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is poised to bring fans back into the charming and spooky realm of the afterlife with both new and familiar faces.
Here’s everything to know about the cast of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.
Michael Keaton as Beetlejuice
Keaton reprises his role as the titular character, Beetlejuice, the mischievous and chaotic ghost with a penchant for mayhem, in the 2024 revival.
Keaton's career spans decades of notable roles in films like Batman, Spotlight and Birdman — which earned him a Golden Globe in 2015 as well as an Academy Award nomination. In 2022, Keaton took home an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his performance in the Hulu miniseries Dopesick.
As far as reclaiming his role as Beetlejuice, the award-winning actor told PEOPLE in February 2024 that filming was “the most fun [he’d] had on set in a long time.”
Keaton, who has worked with Burton for decades on multiple projects, said that the two had one prerequisite for a Beetlejuice revival: nothing too modern.
“The one thing that he and I decided on early, early, early on from the beginning, if we ever did it again, I was totally not interested in doing something where there was too much technology,” he said. “It had to feel handmade.”
Off-screen, Keaton has a son, Sean Douglas, who is a successful songwriter and producer.
Winona Ryder as Lydia Deetz
Ryder returns as Lydia Deetz, a goth who can see ghosts and forms a special connection with Beetlejuice.
Ryder’s portrayal of Lydia’s offbeat, dark humor blended with heartfelt emotion was among the many roles that made Ryder a household name from a young age. The actress assumed iconic roles that further catapulted her fame in films like Heathers, Mermaids, Edward Scissorhands, Little Women, Dracula and Girl, Interrupted. Ryder has also gained a new generation of fans with her starring role as Joyce Byers in Netflix’s Stranger Things, which is set to premiere its fifth season in 2025.
In a July 2024 interview with Harper’s Bazaar, the actress expressed fondness for her character Lydia in the 1988 film, saying, “She was someone I really identified with.” Ryder also noted that her “one condition” when she signed on for Stranger Things was that she’d be able to return to Lydia if a Beetlejuice revival happened.
“I remember at my first meeting with the Duffer brothers. I said, ‘As long as if Beetlejuice 2 happens you’ll let me go do that,’ “ the actress said. “They agreed. Luckily it worked out. That was my one condition.”
Ryder has been in a long-term relationship with fashion designer Scott Mackinlay Hahn since 2011.
Catherine O'Hara as Delia Deetz
O'Hara reprises her role as Delia Deetz, Lydia's eccentric and artistic stepmother in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.
O’Hara’s prolific Hollywood career has spanned film and television with iconic roles in Home Alone, Best in Show and notably her performance as Moira Rose in Schitt's Creek, which earned her numerous award nominations and wins throughout the series’ run. O’Hara also has a prolific career as a voice actress, assuming star roles in films such as Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, Where the Wild Things Are, Elemental and the upcoming DreamWorks animation film The Wild Robot.
When discussing the upcoming Beetlejuice sequel, O’Hara said on the Let's Talk Off Camera with Kelly Ripa podcast that when going about the film’s return, Burton wanted to bring back the “old feeling” of making the first film — before he was the award-winning director and had less pressure on him.
“He was a newcomer. He was a beginner. He didn't have all that pressure on him that he now has. He really just wanted that feeling back of just playing and nobody looking over his shoulder," she said on the show. "And he really got it."
As for O’Hara’s role in the upcoming film, she told PEOPLE in January 2024 that unlike the 1988 original, she has a lot more contact with the titular character in the film’s revival.
“I'd been in the first movie in group scenes with Michael, but in this, I had an actual moment where the two of us just,” she said. “And it was just so crazy and thrilling, really to just be face-to-face with Beetlejuice.”
Jenna Ortega as Astrid Deetz
Among the new faces in the Beetlejuice realm is Ortega, who plays Lydia's daughter Astrid.
Ortega's role in Beetlejuice 2 marks her second collaboration with Burton, following her portrayal of Wednesday Addams in the hit Netflix series Wednesday.
In a February 2024 interview with Vanity Fair, Ortega expressed excitement about her involvement in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and why she believes it’s an important film in today’s society.
“We need to introduce the younger generation that’s always on the phone to new artistic and creative ideas,” the actress said. “The weirder you get with it, the more people you can get to see it, I think will probably do a lot for film in general.”
Willem Dafoe as Wolf Jackson
Dafoe joins the cast as Wolf Jackson, a ghost detective in the afterlife and former B-movie actor.
The award-winning actor is known for his versatile and dynamic performances in films such as Platoon, Spider-Man and The Florida Project.
In November 2023, Dafoe disclosed details about his character to Variety: he’s a “dead person,” an accident was what led him to the afterlife, he was a “B movie action star” while he was alive and his eventual fate as a ghost detective.
Dafoe has been married to Italian actress and director Giada Colagrande since 2005. In January 2024, Dafoe was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Monica Bellucci as Delores
Bellucci plays Delores, Beetlejuice's enigmatic ex-wife.
The Italian model and actress has had a diverse and iconic career with roles in films like The Matrix Reloaded, Malèna and Spectre. In 2024, Bellucci's performance in the documentary Maria Callas: Letters and Memories earned her the Nastro d'Argento for Protagonist of the Year, per Vogue Italia.
Bellucci has two daughters from her previous marriage to French actor Vincent Cassel and has been in a relationship with Burton since 2022.
Justin Theroux as Rory
Theroux appears as Rory, a new character whose role in the story is still somewhat unknown.
In the film’s trailer, Rory is standing alongside Lydia, Astrid and Delia at a gravesite — possibly hinting at his relation to the Deetz family.
The Emmy-winning actor is known for his work in films and TV series such as Six Feet Under, The Leftovers, Mulholland Drive and Tropic Thunder.
Theroux was previously married to Jennifer Aniston from 2015 to 2017 and has been linked to actress Nicole Brydon Bloom since 2023.
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