Last night Warner Bros. dropped the official teaser trailer for Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. But what did we learn from our first look at Michael Keaton’s return as the legendary Betelgeuse? Today we’re taking a deeper look at the trailer, searching for what it tells us about the upcoming film. Be warned, there may be spoilers ahead.
But before we do that, let’s remind ourselves about that trailer with one more look:
Returning Home
The trailer opens on a familiar location, East Corinth, Vermont, better known in the world of the film as Winter River. The establishing shot instantly calls back to the 1988 original film. In Beetlejuice, Winter River was the home of Barbara and Adam Maitland (Gina Davis and Alec Baldwin). The couple’s young lives were sadly cut short after a car accident on the bridge between the idyllic home and main town. Whilst their ghosts are trapped in their marital home the Deetz family, Charles (Jeffrey Jones), Delia (Catherine O’Hara) and Lydia (Winona Ryder), move in and begin making radical changes.
In the sequel we know that a family tragedy will bring the Deetz family back together in Winter River. But with the Maitland/Deetz house suspiciously absent from the trailer, what has artist Delia done to the house?
Family Funeral
The synopsis for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice teases an “unexpected family tragedy” for the Deetz family. In his interview with EW, Tim Burton wouldn’t divulge further information on what it is which brings three generations of the family together. But a shot in the trailer, featuring former Torchwood actor Burn Gorman, reveals much more.
The elaborately designed grave stone, clearly a Delia Deetz special, features a portrait of Lydia’s father Charles. Not initially visible in the frame, as the coffin begins to lower the face becomes clear as the shot fades to black.
This does beg the question of what happens to Charles in the afterlife? Could he be trapped in famous waiting room on his way to his final resting place?
The Next Generation of Deetz
Attending Charles’ funeral are three generations of Deetz women. We’re reintroduced to Winona Ryder as Lydia and Catherine O’Hara as Delia. This moment in the trailer also gives us another look at Wednesday’s Jenna Ortega as Astrid, Lydia’s daughter.
We can also see another figure stood next to Lydia, this is Justin Theroux as the mysterious Rory. His face isn’t shown in the trailer but was visible in the still released earlier this week by EW. Could Rory be Lydia’s husband/partner and the father of Astrid? If so, why are WB and Burton keep his role so secretive?
Lydia was never close with her step-mother in the original film. Something which the Beetlejuice Broadway show focussed on in more depth. But where is their relationship now some 40 years later?
Family Home
The next sequence in the trailer returns us to a very pivotal location inside the Deetz house. The attic. Fans of the original film will remember that the attic was where Barbara and Adam spent much of their time after dying. All these years later, Adam’s model of the town still exists and finds itself a key feature of the teaser.
At the end of Beetljuice the Deetz family was living in peace with the Maitlands. But with neither Gina Davis nor Alec Baldwin no the cast list it begs the question of what has happened to the Maitlands in the intervening years? Chances are they have passed on to the other side after watching Lydia grow up but we hope that Beetlejuice Beetlejuice picks up on this to give them a fond farewell.
From this footage it would certainly seem that Astrid isn’t familiar with the attic where her mother spent so much of her time. Could the distraction of the family funeral allow the chance to explore a forbidden area in the house leading to the return of Betelgeuse?
Face to Face with the Past
Whilst we don’t see who conjures the titular character the trailer is still packed with shots of his reemergence. After a series of shots depicting the miniature town breaking apart, including the classic Betelgeuse sign, we finally see the miscreant “bio-exorcist” rising over a shocked Lydia.
Brilliantly, WB has given us no dialogue from this moment so we only have two closeup shots to go off. Lydia is clearly stunned to see Betelgeuse again after so long. Whereas in his close up it looks like he has only one thing on his mind, chaos. We can’t let this scene go without commenting on the dramatic lighting. Whilst we know that Burton wants to keep Beetlejuice Beetlejuice as practical and close to the original as possible. This new dramatic, colourful lighting looks incredible in the trailer.
And with that we reach the title card and the end of the trailer. Well done WB (and Burton). This was truly a teaser and gives very little away. But what we can learn from the teaser certainly as us excited to see the final film. Are you excited for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice? Let us know in the comments below.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will be released in the UK on September 6, 2024 by Warner Bros. Pictures.
