"I have to say that Beetlejuice was one of those movies in which it gave all of us a chance to do our best work. They love it so much, in fact, that when they die just 10 minutes into the film in a sudden car accident, their main purpose becomes to successfully haunt the house and rid it of its uncaring, obnoxious new owners. Catherine OHara met her future husband, production designer Bo Welch, on the set of Beetlejuice. Tim Burton, though, wanted to do something a little more different than what the two envisioned and brought Warren Skaaren on board to polish things up, aka change things. Was he drawn to acting because he was used to having an audience of siblings? That's a real bummer, isn't it? Fortunately, someone came to their senses and decided to keep the original name of Beetlejuice. It's remarkably similar to the makeup he wore for the movie "Beetlejuice". So he would never do anything just for the money? Michael Keaton spent only two weeks filming. The consumer spending estimate is based on the average sales price for the title in the retailers we survey. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Beetlejuice DVD (2009) Michael Keaton, Grenada Davis, Alec Baldwin at the best online prices at eBay! The Oscar-nominated actor, who turned 70 on. As he walks into a London hotel room on a grey Saturday morning, holding a cup of coffee, he looks strikingly different from the man I have spent four decades watching on screen: he has the trim, spry build of a wiry woodsman rather than a 66-year-old actor, thanks to half a lifetime spent in rural Montana, fishing and hunting. The name. Ever since the original was released and proved successful, Warner Bros. wanted Tim Burton to make a sequel. Free delivery for many products. Free shipping for many products! It's amazing. Initially, Keaton thought about going into comedy rather than acting, and you can still find some of his very funny standup routines online. Not only was the name Michael Douglas taken, but Mike Keaton too, in the form of the famous broadcaster. It was actually Dick Cavett who came up with the solution to this problem. That's an incredibly short time for any lead actor, so he must've been thrilled about this since he's been rather frank about how he enjoys having time to himself (to go fishing). "Beetlejuice" was a hit during its original release which of course led to merchandise like toys, and a cartoon continuing the adventures of Beetlejuice and Lydia: The animated series proved so successful that it aired on ABC Saturday mornings, while also airing on Fox weekday afternoons, for two seasons. What happened? He was the dazzlingly frenetic lead in Tim Burtons Beetlejuice, a largely improvised performance opposite fellow ghosts Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis. He spent those years hanging out in Montana, hunting with neighbours and walking in the woods. However, it was not the English goth bands look that influenced the characters creation, but the audience made up of mostly of young women whose rebellious attitude and sense of fashion really spoke to him. how much did michael keaton make for beetlejuice. In Birdman, he plays an actor so neurotic, he ends up running through Manhattan in his underwear. Now 25 years later, it is reported that a sequel is finally going forward with Burton in talks to direct and Keaton returning to star. It wasnt just me. Although the franchise planned for a third movie, Keaton decided not to return to the franchise, despite being offered a lucrative $15 million deal. Larry Wilson also spoke to Yahoo! More than 30 years since we were first introduced to the ghost with the most in 1988s Beetlejuice, fans still revel in saying his name three times and revisiting the bizarre, hilarious exploration of the afterlife, either during the Halloween season or any time of the year. My hypothesis is that maybe because he can't outrightly say his name (like . It's time to feed your thirst for Beetlejuice knowledge with behind-the-scenes secrets and all of the things that could have been. Anyone familiar with the controversial reception to 1992s Batman Returns knows that Tim Burton is no stranger to receiving some pushback from his distributors, and Beetlejuice was apparently no exception. Two, Betelgeuse was meant to assault Lydia and not marry her as per the final version. And I said, 'What?' 2023 The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. Photograph: Fox/Kobal/Rex/Shutterstock, I wrote a book about why those movies are the most important ever made. When Tim Burton first signed on to helm Beetlejuice, his top choice for the title role was Sammy Davis, Jr., of whom hed been a huge fan since childhood. When Keaton was last year added to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Sean gave the speech: Ive seen everything from Batman to bath time when I was a young kid. This is one of my favorite movies and I've thought a lot about this (but haven't done any research). Shadix had been extremely proud of Beetlejuice, saying in a 2008 interview that was posted on his website, "We had so much fun filming this unusual and so very original movie that I had a feeling something very special was happening.". Tim Burton caught on to this plot hole, but he decided to allow it for the actors sake because they wouldve been uncomfortable if they had to be kept wet on dry land all the time. Cinemablend is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Looking back, it seems like a perfect casting as Ryder has become synonymous with Lydia. So I showed up for work and I walked on the stage and said, This is either going to be way off the mark, or hes going to I dont know what hes going to do.. When you see [the movie], you understand probably why it was hard for him to explain, Keaton said of the beloved horror-comedy about ghosts and the obnoxious poltergeist, Beetlejuice. It has become widely known that Geena Davis immediately signed on to portray Barbara Maitland after meeting with Tim Burton. The dead lead lives of noisy desperation in "Beetlejuice," the absolutely exhausting new musical that opened on Thursday at the Winter Garden Theater. He was paid $5 million for his titular role as Batman. . Because sales figures are estimated based on sampling, they will be more accurate for higher-selling titles. You also get away with more, because by that point your parents are like, Whos that again? With Beetlejuice, Tim Burton took exactly the same approach. While they are trying to think deeply about how they will solve their crisis, Betelgeuse is jabbering away in the corner and distracting them as much as possible. As such, it often takes a little bit of persuasion to convince these actors that a project is worth their time. Keaton reels back in his chair, hands over his face. Apparently, this was at the behest of the studio execs, who felt the audience wouldn't know the snake was actually Betelgeuse and not some other random monster. Juice!. For a description of the different acting role types we use to categorize acting perfomances, see our Glossary. That would not be the only time during the making of Beetlejuice when he came at odds with the studio. So what are you waiting for? Burtons world in Beetlejuice is typical of his early films: dramatic, odd, and otherworldly. Burton, of course, loved the look of the character Keaton had created. Burton ended up defining his zany gothic visual style when he directed the film. The man truly is full of surprises. Your culture and entertainment cheat-sheet. According to celebritynetworth.com Keaton was paid $5 million for 1989's Batman (that's worth $10 million today). If you would like your comment to be considered for inclusion on Weekend magazines letters page in print, please email weekend@theguardian.com, including your name and address (not for publication). Hes a really nice guy, Michael, but its not even their name, I think?. but something about the character of Betelgeuse isnt dated at all. Id like another shot at it, but the director wanted to turn the volume up. Mom (DVD, 1983) Michael Keaton Teri Garr Comedy at the best online prices at eBay! So I may have lost interest, combined with a whole lot of people not knocking on my door. Far from being the lead character, Betelgeuse doesn't even make an appearance until 25 minutes in. He has a strong interest in comic books, film, music, and comedy. In many ways, Michael Keaton is similar to Bill Murray. I said I want hair that looks like I stuck my finger in an electrical socket. And I said I want mold because Tim said he lives under rocks,' Keaton recalled. Keaton was the youngest of seven children in a working-class family, and they never went to the cinema because it was too expensive to buy tickets for all the kids. In an interview with Coming Soon, Keaton revealed how he improvised many of his lines in his first feature film. Thank you for signing up to CinemaBlend. Tim Burton's Beetlejuice is the film which put director & Michael Keaton on the map. No, Kirk changed it from Danielovitch, I say. One studio executive was interested in Sam Kinison, but Kinisons agent never even told him about the project. Aw, man! Her self-described strange and unusual personality and appearance was first dreamed up by co-writer Larry Wilson, who revealed in an oral history for CBC Radio that he found inspiration while seeing The Cure perform in concert. Heck, you only need to look at why Keaton dropped out of Batman Forever, saying the script was terrible and he just wasn't interested. In the much darker original script, Betelgeuse wanted to sexually assault Lydia instead of marrying her. Not giving up, though, Burton flew out to meet and convince her about the part. Beetlejuice was a critical and commercial success, grossing US$74.7 million from a budget of US$15 million. Aside from Beetlejuice's name the Maitlands also say the word "home" three times to escape Beetlejuice, and it's the number of times they knock on the door to get to the After Life. There were several scenes written that never made it into the final film, including one that showed the world of limbo between the living and the dead as giant gears (and hands of clocks) cut through actual fabrics that represented time: Here's the scene from one of the original scripts: -- The size of a man -- rolls by, tearing up the unseamed ground. The movies upbeat ending and other crucial aspects are key as to why Beetlejuice may just be the most delightfully strange and unusual movie ever made in which death is a major theme. Before OHara was cast, the producers considered Sigourney Weaver, Linda Hamilton, Laura Dern, and Goldie Hawn for the role. What does he mean by changing things internally? The Maitlands quickly have to learn to navigate Tim Burtons freaky view of the afterlife, monster-ridden deserts and all. Man, you got me going on this!, We spend 10 minutes nerding out over The Breakfast Club, before he thinks back to when he met Hughes while making Mr Mom: I read the script and I thought, Wow, this is really funny, this guy has something. And then I met John and I said, You ought to direct this [too]. But he said no, he was off to direct those movies starring people closer to your age, he says, referring to the teen movies, which is sweet, because I am in my late 30s.