Michael Keaton admitted he felt “nervous” about reprising his iconic role as Beetlejuice for Tim Burton’s long-awaited sequel because he didn’t want to “let everyone down.”
Fans got their first taste of the quirky Bio-Exorcist more than three decades ago when Keaton, now 72, played the unforgettable character in the 1988 cult film alongside the likes of Alec Baldwin, Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is set for release on September 6, and director Burton, 65, has added Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux and Willem Dafoe to the cast, in addition to his real-life girlfriend, Monica Bellucci.
During an interview with Al Roker on Today, Keaton said of the second film: “I was nervous before we started, we all were a little bit, because I didn’t want to screw it up. ‘Can I do this and not let everyone down?’, frankly.”
Referring to the first time he saw himself in the Beetlejuice makeup again, he said: “When I saw that I was like, ‘Yeah, there we are,’ and the story is a really, really strong story and everyone is so good at it, that the pressure was taken off of me a little bit.”
Michael Keaton admitted he felt ‘nervous’ about reprising his iconic role as Beetlejuice for Tim Burton’s long-awaited sequel.
The 72-year-old actor said he didn’t want to “disappoint everyone” by reprising his role as the Bio-Exorcist.
Asked if it felt like 36 years, Keaton joked, “It feels like 136 years,” while his co-stars O’Hara, 70, and Ryder, 52, laughed and agreed.
When Roker, 70, commented that O’Hara’s character, Delia Deetz, has “softened” and is “more likable,” the Home Alone star responded: “You have to be. Come on, how much energy can you spend arguing with someone? Keaton added: ‘It’s just exhausting.’
Speaking about Ryder’s character, Lydia Deetz, who is her on-screen stepdaughter, O’Hara added: ‘I have come to love and respect this smart little girl who wouldn’t budge an inch to me years ago, because she has matured too.
Ryder responded, “But there’s tremendous empathy now that I know what it’s like to have a daughter,” referring to her daughter in the sequel, Astrid, who is played by Ortega.
The Stranger Things actress admitted: “I felt very emotional, like on set. I remember being very present in every moment. It was really one of the most special experiences I’ve ever had.”
Speaking about Burton, who also directed films such as Edward Scissorhands and Planet of the Apes, O’Hara said: ‘I think great directors, and Tim is one, are great manipulators, just like a great father.
“It makes you feel like you were the one who had the idea, even though he made you do exactly what he wanted you to do and you feel… that it’s so collaborative and so alive and just happening in the moment.”
Ryder added: “The first one was the first time I felt like I was part of a collaboration, even though I was 15. I was usually just told where to stand, so it meant a lot to me.”
Keaton sat down with co-stars Catherine O’Hara (left) and Winona Ryder for an interview on NBC’s Today.
The original Beetlejuice was released in March 1988 and has since become a cult classic.
Jenna Ortega, O’Hara, Keaton, Ryder, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci and Tim Burton at a photocall in New York on August 17
The official Beetlejuice Beetlejuice trailer was released in May, giving excited fans a sneak peek of what’s to come in the highly-anticipated follow-up film.
Years have passed since the events of the original film, and now Lydia (Ryder) is the mother of a teenage daughter, Astrid, and assumed she would never hear from the mischievous Beetlejuice again – until her daughter stumbles upon an advertisement for a “Bio Exorcist” in her wake.
It’s Astrid who ends up bringing Beetlejuice back by saying his name three times despite her mother’s stern warnings, and of course, chaos ensues.