I’m relieved that Tim Burton canceled the missing original character cameo plans from Beetlejuice 2

Warning! This article contains spoilers for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice!Screenwriter Alfred Gough revealed this Beetlejuice 2 was once going to have cameos from two missing original characters, but that plan was scrapped before the Tim Burton movie’s 2024 release. novelty, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Has no major cameos from original charactersWith the big “cameo” appearance is Tim Burton’s frequent collaborator Danny DeVito as the afterlife janitor. Rather, each returned original character in Beetlejuice 2 is given a substantial role, with some missing figures simply referred to conversationally in the sequel.

While the Deetz family members, Betelgeuse and even Little Jane Butterfield return in Beetlejuice 2, The most glaring absences in the sequel are Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis Adam and Barbara MaitlandThe main character of the 1988 movie. The Maitland couple died in a tragic car accident in Beetlejuices opening sequence, and become ghosts who sought to frighten the new Deetz family inhabiting their home. After the 36-year gap between movies, Adam and Barbara are completely absent from the sequel for good reason, because the actors’ real-life aging. However, they nearly got brief cameo appearances before finally nixing the idea.

Adam and Barbara Were Originally Going to Cameo at the End of Beetlejuice 2 – Why It Didn’t Happen

Tim Burton decided against the Maitlands’ cameo at the end of Beetlejuice 2

According to screenwriter Alfred Gough, who also collaborated with Tim Burton on Netflix Wednesday Show, there was once a version of Beetlejuice 2 which included cameos from Adam and Barbara. The writers revealed that they discussed with the director the possibility of Baldwin and Davis’s character cameos, but Tim Burton ultimately decided to reject any cameos by the Maitlands. Gough explained that one idea had the Maitlands “Just show up at the end [of Beetlejuice 2]“ But the real-world aging of Baldwin and Davis complicates the cameo:

“It’s funny with the Maitlands because we asked Tim, and we went back and forth. There was a version where they just showed up at the end, but the problem is that they are ghosts. So they need to look like they are 35, which is never going to happen. I think Tim felt, and Miles and I agreed that their story had been told. How do we move on from this?”

Instead of a cameo, the writers opted for a more brief conversational nod to the Maitlands, with Lydia explaining their absence by revealing that Barbara and Adam “Moved“After finding a loophole in the haunting rules of the afterlife. The Script still includes a cheeky nod to the struggles of Beetlejuice 2 Realistically explain the Maitlands’ absencesAs the original movie revealed they are supposed to haunt the Winter River House for the first 125 years of their afterlife. When Astrid asks where the Maitlands have gone Beetlejuice 2Lydia wisely mentions the loop, with the teenager responding, “How convenient.”

It is still Unclear how a cameo with the Maitlands would have worked in Beetlejuice 2It’s the end. One option could have been for the recently deceased Delia and Charles Deets to meet them in the afterlife, or perhaps the Maitlands could have been the afterlife ghosts who helped Lydia and Astrid escape back home instead of Richard. Perhaps, Adam and Barbara would have paid the Deetz family a visit to the Winter River home after figuring out how to end their 125-year sentence, similar to the “jump the line” musical number in the original Beetlejuice ending

However, the problem remains that If Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis weren’t old with CGI technology, it would be quite jarring to see the MaitlandsThose who died in the early 30’s appear to be the same as the 60’s. With an estimated $100 million budget for Beetlejuice 2That technology would have made for some very expensive cameos, so the decision to leave the ghosts out of the 1988 movie is quite practical. As beloved as the Maitlands continue to be BeetlejuiceTim Burton made the right decision to leave them out of the sequel and put the focus on the Deetzes.

I love Adam and Barbara, but bringing them back for cameos would be a mistake

The story of the Maitlands is already over and does not need to be retold

I tend to agree with Tim Burton about the Maitlands having a cameo Beetlejuice 2Although I adore their character. Burton is right: the Maitlands’ story has already been told, and there is little room to grow their characters Without simply rehashing the original movie’s plot. It is important to acknowledge how influential the Maitlands were on the Deets’ lives, especially when Adam and Barbara became surrogate parents to the teenage Lydia in BeetlejuiceIt was late 1988, but that was also 36 years ago.

Adam and Barbara have been haunting the attic for decades while the Deets left and lived their lives – the way forward for the two ghosts is to have their spirits move on to the big next, not to save Lydia and Astrid by going against Betelgeuse again. I have to admit that Bringing back the Maitlands for cameos would simply be an act of fan serviceA trap that the other numerous callbacks and prove in Beetlejuice 2 largely avoided.

Not only would it have been fan service, but their cameos would have distracted from the core family story at the heart of the themes in Beetlejuice 2It’s the end. The Maitlands with a cameo would not elevate the messages of Beetlejuice 2s resolution and the reconciliation between Lydia and Astrid. In fact, it probably would have done the opposite, viz Their cameos may have undermined the audience’s focus on the resolution of the Deetzes’ familial conflict and shared trauma from their experiences with Betelgeuse.

If Adam and Barbara appeared in Beetlejuice 2end, They would become the main editor of the third act. Delia’s death, Astrid and Lydia’s reconciliation, and Lydia’s dark reality after being tormented by visions of Betelgeuse would be overlooked by the buzz about the Maitlands. There is no point in bringing them back for what would only be one minute in the final act just for the couple to reunite with Lydia and for fans of the original Beetlejuice To point on the screen like Leonardo DiCaprio in this Once upon a time in Hollywood meme.

Adam and Barbara’s stories have been told and Beetlejuice 2s focus is on the deets. The sequel’s history makes it too difficult to juggle yet another subplot to bring in the Maitlands, and, frankly, Adam and Barbara’s legacies deserve more than just a fan service cameo. If they can’t realistically be moved into the main plot, it’s best to simply honor their memories in the sequel while moving forward into the Deetzes’ deeper themes and conflicts instead.

There are still some details of Adam & Barbara in Beetlejuice 2 that I’m disappointed about

Their deeper impact on Lydia’s life went unrecognized

Although I am relieved that these two lack originality Beetlejuice The characters didn’t have a cameo, I’m still a little disappointed that some aspects of their story were not addressed. Lydia reveals that the Maitlands’ ghosts “passed on,” however There is no reference to how her relationship with the couple developed after the original movieAlthough they seemed to play a more active role in her upbringing than Charles and Delia. In addition, there is no indication of how long the Maitlands have been out of the Winter River house – or what exactly the loophole is that allowed them to leave.

It’s hard to imagine that Lydia became famous for her ability to see ghosts and even started a talk show based around the Maitlands’ “ghost house” attic and didn’t keep tabs on them over the years. While the Maitlands may have fled the Winter River house soon after Lydia graduated high school and presumably left town, they were still incredibly important figures in her youth and the inspirations for her adult career. Adam and Barbara didn’t need to have sex, but they did Disappointed that their personal influence on Lydia feeling accepted as a teenager is not addressed in Beetlejuice 2.