This year marks the 30th anniversary of Tim Burton’s strange unusual horror/comedy Beetlejuice, which has got fans hoping for that long-touted sequel once again. Though it’s been discussed on and off for the past few years, sadly, the Ghost with the Most doesn’t seem to be climbing out of his grave with any urgency. In the absence of any official news on Beetlejuice 2, then, these amazing fan posters have imagined what a follow-up to the 1988 cult classic would be like.
The two character posters from artist Alex Murillo feature Michael Keaton’s titular perverted poltergeist and Winona Ryder’s goth icon Lydia Deetz. The Beetlejuice piece sees the spirit playfully covering his mouth with some fabric of the same pattern as his distinctive black and white striped coat.
The Lydia one is perhaps more inventive, though, as it imagines the formally teenage character as a middle-aged woman. What’s more, dressing her in a black veil and the wedding ring on her finger suggests Murillo came up with a bit of backstory here that Lydia’s husband has recently died. Perhaps that’s how Beetlejuice comes back into her life in this imagined version of the sequel?
While it’s hard to say if a follow-up will ever get off the ground, history suggests that we shouldn’t get too excited. The idea of a sequel has existed ever since the original first came out, but a few years back interest was renewed when Burton, Keaton and Ryder were all linked with the project. Seth Grahame-Smith was initially attached to pen the script, but Burton rejected it, reasoning that he wanted to make absolutely sure the story was as good as possible.
Last we heard, screenwriter Mike Vukadinovich had been brought in to provide a revamped screenplay. That was back in 2017, though. Still, if his script’s received well by both Burton and Warner Bros., then the bio-exorcist might finally be back in action. In fact, maybe if we say Beetlejuice three times it might appear?