CinemaTim Burton was ‘disillusioned with the film industry’ before Beetlejuice 2Beetlejuice director Tim Burton says the horror-comedy sequel saved him from feeling ‘disillusioned’today at 3:36 PM

At a press conference held today ahead of the world premiere of his new film The Ghosts Still Have Fun: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024) at the opening of the Venice Film Festivalthe director Tim Burton shared reflections on her creative journey. “I realized that if I’m going to do something again, I want to do it with my heart. As we get older, sometimes our life takes a different direction – I lost my way a little bit,” she said. Burton.

According to the director, this project was an opportunity to re-energize himself and return to his passions. “For me, this film was a new beginning, getting back to the things I love doing and the people I love working with. Sometimes I felt a little lost along the way.”

Burton expressed his satisfaction with the creative process: “Regardless of the final result, I loved it and enjoyed making this film with all these people.”

The Return of Beetlejuice

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is the long-awaited sequel to the 1988 horror comedy directed by Burton. Michael Keaton returns to the role of bio-exorcist to help the family Deetz closing a portal to the beyond.

In addition to Burton and Keatonthe press conference was attended by the actors Winona Ryder, Jenna Ortega, Catherine O’Hara, Monica Bellucci, Willem Dafoe, Justin Theroux and the producer Tommy Harper.

Keaton commented on the project’s origins: “If you ask me where this came from — it just came out of thin air.” He also praised the current cast: “This cast may be even better, if that’s possible, than the previous one.” Ryder as Lydia Deetz and O’Hara as Delia Deetz reprise their roles from the first film, while Bellucci, Dafoe, Theroux and Ortega are new additions.

New Talents and Established Relationships

Jenna Ortegawhich interprets Astriddaughter of Lydiahighlighted the importance of having already worked with Burton in the series of NetflixWandinha (2022). “It was wonderful to already have an established professional relationship with Tim,” he said Ortega. About her character, she added: “Her anger comes from a different place – she’s not even really angry. Astrid has more trauma and resentment towards the world.”

Burton revealed that working on the series was a significant boost to creating Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. “To do Wandinha reenergized me — hiking through the Carpathian Mountains in Romania does something to a person.”

The director also praised Jenna Ortega: “This film feels fresh because it is seen through the eyes of Jenna — she’s the anchor.” He expressed gratitude for the cast: “I always feel grateful for the cast I have — almost always. I was scared for Jack Palance once — that’s pretty rare.”

The Actors’ Personal Touch

Keaton spoke humorously about his grotesque character: “It’s obvious that my character has matured. As sophisticated and sensitive as he was in the first film, he is even more so in this one.” Ryder joked about their scenes together: “One of my favorite parts was being able to look into your eyes.”

Monica Bellucci highlighted the film’s intergenerational theme: “It’s about three generations of women in the family Deetz. They love and support each other, even when they fight.” The actress also mentioned her Italian inspirations when working with Burton: “I got to know the films of the Italian director Mario Bava through this work.” About her character, ex-wife of Beetlejuice of Keaton, Bellucci said: “I love her duality — she’s evil but also charming and adventurous. She’s a metaphor for life because we all have emotional scars; but she’s strong and she’s coming back.”

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will have its world premiere tonight (Wednesday, August 28) as the opening film of the Venice Film Festival before opening worldwide the weekend of September 6.