Beetlejuice 2: Release date, cast and latest news

Titled Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, the sequel had its premiere as the opening film at the Venice Film Festival and has received somewhat middling responses from critics, with our own RadioTimes.com review calling it a "rambunctious sequel with some delicious moments."

The film sees Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder and Catherine O'Hara all returning to their iconic roles from the original film and also introduces a wealth of big name stars to the mix including Willem Dafoe, Monica Bellucci and, most prominently, Wednesday's Jenna Ortega.

As has been teased in the film's trailer, the film opens with the death of original character Charles Deetz, with his daughter Lydia (Ryder) and granddaughter Astrid (Ortega) heading back to Winter River for the funeral.

Soon, they are having another brush with the titular bio-exorcist ghost – again played by Keaton in his iconic striped suit – with predictably chaotic results.

Bellucci and Dafoe recently spoke exclusively to RadioTimes.com about stepping on to a Burton set for the first time, with the latter explaining that: "It's like being at an amusement park."

He added: "There's so many little jokes and different pleasures. And you go through... like... talk about the office [his character's office in the film]. I don't participate in this, this has been created for me, and I go and there's so much information there... it's a complete world, and then you fold into it. And that's always a pleasure as an actor."

Read on for everything we know about the Beetlejuice 2 release date and its cast of new and returning faces. Skip to the end of the page to watch the trailer!

Beetlejuice 2 release date

Warner Bros has announced that Beetlejuice 2 will be released on the big screen on Friday 6th September 2024 – so we're pretty much there!

Production kicked off on Wednesday 10th May 2023.

The sequel has been in the works at Warner Bros for many years, but Brad Pitt’s production company Plan B officially joined the project in February 2022.

Beetlejuice 2 plot

You can expect lots more chaos at the hands of the always anarchic Beetlejuice – after he's once again let loose when the Deetz family return to Winter River, this time with a vengeful ex-wife on his tail.

The synopsis for the film reads: "After an unexpected family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River.

"Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia’s life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid, discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened."

Beetlejuice 2 cast

There are a lot of familiar faces back this time around: Tim Burton is helming the film, Michael Keaton has returned as the title character Beetlejuice, and Winona Ryder is back as Lydia Deetz.

In addition, Jenna Ortega plays Lydia's daughter Astrid, marking the young actor's second time working with Burton, who was an executive producer on Netflix’s series reboot Wednesday and directed four of its eight episodes.

Speaking exclusively with RadioTimes.com, Ortega said of being directed by Burton in Wednesday: "He put me at ease. He was definitely one of my rocks on that set in terms of when he hires an actor he completely trusts them. He always asked for my opinion and I grew to become very protective of the character because I didn’t want her to be like every other teenage girl."

She continued: "It’s hard when you have things like boys pursuing her or going to school dances and just being in that environment. It was really wonderful when Tim would call me to his trailer in the morning and say, 'What lines do you want to take out? What do you want to keep in? What would you like to say instead?'

"He was always interested in what I had to say or would always ask for my approval. I trust him completely. He’s done incredible work so I was bit in awe of that quality. He’s very sweet and very respectful, and it was definitely one of my favourite experiences with a director."

Ryder previously expressed an interest in reprising her role from the original film. In 2013, she told The Daily Beast that the sequel "sounds like it might be happening".

"It's not a remake. It's 27 years later," Ryder explained at the time. "And I have to say, I love Lydia so much. She was such a huge part of me. I would be really interested in what she is doing 27 years later."

She added: "I would never go near [a sequel] if it was not Tim and Michael. Because those guys, I love."

Meanwhile, Catherine O'Hara will also be back as Delia Deetz, Willem Dafoe joins the cast as a a ghost detective named Wolf Jackson, Monica Belluci plays Betelgeuse's ex-wife Dolores, and Burn Gorman stars as a reverend.

Plus, Justin Theroux will play a character called Rory, the producer of a paranormal show that Lydia now works on and her new romantic partner.

Is there a trailer for Beetlejuice 2?

Yes – more than one! A full-length trailer debuted in May 2024 and gave us a few more plot details as well as a tease of the chaos we can expect – you can find it below:

An easier teaser trailer was released in March and begins with Ortega's Astrid riding a bike along a rural road, before we're shown a funeral scene. Watch below:

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