Beetlejuice

Trivia: Michael Keaton created Beetlejuice's appearance with various items given to him by the dressing department. Tim Burton advised him that Beetlejuice shouldn't look like he came from a specific time.

Trivia: The model tree falling over after Beetlejuice kicks it was never supposed to happen. This caused Michael Keaton to ad-lib the "nice fucking model" line. Tim Burton enjoyed it so much he kept it in the film.

Trivia: Even though Beetlejuice is the title character, he has only 17 and a half minutes of screen time.

Trivia: When Glenn Shadix (who portrayed Otho) passed away in 2010, the song "Day-O" was played at his funeral as a tribute to his work on this film.

TedStixon

Video

Trivia: When Adam decides to go back to the bridge to figure out how he and Barbara got back to the house, when Adam steps off the stairs, he ends up in a desert world. In the original scene, after leaving the steps, Adam is transported to a world with gears flying all over the place. Test audiences were confused by this scene so it was changed.

Trivia: The studio disliked the title "Beetlejuice" and wanted to call it "House Ghosts".As a joke,Tim Burton suggested the name "Scared Sheetless" and was horrified when the studio considered using it.

Trivia: If you look closely during Delia and Charle's last scene (when Delia scares Charles with the Beetlejuice sculpture), you can see a magazine cover featuring Delia and her sculptures at the top of the frame for a few seconds, implying she's found some success in the meantime.

TedStixon

Trivia: The original script was significantly different from the final film. For example, Beetlejuice himself was initially envisioned as a murderous winged demon who would occasionally take on the form of a short, portly middle-eastern man. And the humor and content was meant to be much darker. The originally climax had the Maitlands trying to save Lydia from being raped by Beetlejuice's true demonic form, as opposed to marrying her as seen in the final film. Tim Burton liked the idea behind the film, but pushed for it to be made more light-hearted and less graphic, and it was subsequently re-written into the film we know today.

TedStixon

Trivia: In 1990, a script was written for the sequel; it involved the cast of the first film going to Hawaii. Burton and and the cast were set to return, but the cast would only come if Burton was involved. He became to busy with batman returns and eventually gave up on the idea. The script is still owned by The Geffen Film Company till this day.

moviedude345

Trivia: Alec Baldwin has admitted he didn't really understand or even like the film when it was being made, and actually thought it was going to kill his career. Although he has also said he enjoyed his time on-set, especially working with Michael Keaton. It ended up being a big hit and helped put Baldwin on the map.

TedStixon

Trivia: While the film is called "Beetlejuice," the character's name in the film is actually spelled "Betelgeuse." It was decided to re-spell the name in the trailers and on the film's title card for marketing purposes, to make it easier for audiences to be able to pronounce the name.

TedStixon

Trivia: The legs of the magician's assistant character (the lady who is cut in half) were "played" by Tim Burton's then-girlfriend.

TedStixon

Trivia: In one scene, Delia is wearing strangely baggy red pants held up with suspenders. This is actually a sweater that Charles was seen wearing earlier. It was flipped upside-down and repurposed into a pair of pants. This is one of a few instances in the film where Delia is repurposing clothing. Another example is in the first diner scene where the characters are eating Chinese food - in that scene, she's wearing a peculiar headband made of gloves.

TedStixon

Trivia: Tim Burton hated the "Day-O" dance number, and thought it wasn't funny. He feared the scene wouldn't get any laughs from audiences. He ended up being proven wrong - audiences loved it and the scene become somewhat iconic.

TedStixon

Revealing mistake: Adam and Barbara aren't supposed to have reflections, but when they enter the recreation of their home (just before they meet Juno), their reflections are shown perfectly in the glass display case that holds Delia's sculptures, behind them. (00:32:55)

furious1116

More mistakes in Beetlejuice

Barbara: We're very unhappy.
Juno: What did you expect? You're dead.

More quotes from Beetlejuice

Question: When the Maitlands return to their home after it's been altered by the new owners, Juno tells the Maitlands that they should be thankful that they didn't die in Italy. What did she mean by that?

zendaddy621

Answer: Italy is the center of the Roman Catholic Church, which includes exorcisms as a real-life ritual. Presumably, ghosts in Italy are at greater risk of encountering trouble in Italy because of this reason.

Answer: It's in reference / added on to her previous statement about being quiet/peaceful: Italy, presumably, has a louder, more raucous group of the living.

Answer: Italy, is a trendsetter. There would be constant art-deco changes that conflict with the Maitland's personal taste. In comparison, the Deets' are pretty tamed.

MasterOfAll

Chosen answer: When the Maitlands first meet their case worker, Juno, they tell her how miffed they are with the new family that has moved into their home. Juno glances around the peaceful house and remarks, "Things seem quiet here. You should thank God you didn't die in Italy." The case worker's name, "Juno," is a traditional Italian girl's name; and we see (when she smokes a cigarette) that Juno's throat has been slashed open from side to side, implying that she died a very violent and grisly death. Based on her personal experience (probably being murdered in Italy), Juno is commenting that the Maitlands could have died a far worse death under far more horrific circumstances, and that they really have little reason to complain.

Charles Austin Miller

I'm Italian: there's literally not a single female being, girl or woman, who has (had or have) this name in this country. Let alone being "traditional." "J" is not even in our original alphabet, go figure. I also think it's about us Italians being noisy and the place being quiet, that's all.

You may be Italian, but you're not informed. While the formal Italian alphabet (derived of Latin) does not have a "J" character, the letter "J' is used in modern Italian writing every day. "Juno," in your limited world, would be spelled "Diuno," who was a Roman goddess (queen of the heavens). As this pertains to Beetlejuice, she is a Roman goddess in charge of organizing.

Charles Austin Miller

Juno slashed her own throat. It says earlier in the movie that people who commit suicide become civil servants, which is what Juno is as their case worker. The beauty queen at the desk implies the same when she talks about what happens to people when they die. She says "if I knew then what I know now, I wouldn't have had my little accident" holding up her slit wrists, implying that she wouldn't have committed suicide if she knew she'd become a civil servant (as a desk girl).

It's never stated or established that Juno committed suicide.

Charles Austin Miller

I really think she was supposed to have had a tracheotomy due to her smoking.

Brian Katcher

More questions & answers from Beetlejuice

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