The Best ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ Easter Eggs and References
SPOILER ALERT: This article contains spoilers for “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” now playing in theaters.
It’s been 36 years since Michael Keaton’s foul-mouthed demon first terrorized audiences in Tim Burton’s 1988 film “Beetlejuice,” but his legacy lives on. Especially now that a sequel, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” is finally in theaters.
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Keaton returns to reprise his role as the ghost with the most, alongside original stars Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara, in the zany supernatural follow-up. While other cast members from the first film like Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin are absent, the 2024 flick is packed with both subtle and overt nods to its predecessor.
See the best Easter eggs and references below.
Harry Belafonte’s “Day-O”
One of the most iconic scenes from the first “Beetlejuice” is the dinner party during which the Maitlands possess the Deetz family and their guests to sing Harry Belafonte’s “Day-O.” Of course, the song makes a return in the sequel — in a very different context. This time, a young choir sings a slowed-down gospel version of the tune at Charles’ funeral. The sequel gets its own larger-than-life musical number near its finale, with Beetlejuice and the Deetz women performing a lively rendition of Richard Harris’ “Macarthur Park” at Lydia’s wedding.
Delia’s Sculptures
Delia Deetz now runs an art gallery in the heart of Manhattan: it’s hip, cool and weird, filled with all types of experimental art. But she hasn’t forgotten her roots. Astrid’s boarding school now boasts the Deetz Art Center, featuring a menagerie of Delia’s eccentric sculptures from the first film (including that wild claw-like sculpture that once pinned her to the wall).
Ghost House
When audiences first see a grown-up Lydia Deetz, she’s hosting her own paranormal investigation show called “Ghost House.” While it’s a perfect name for the series, it’s also a cheeky reference to what could have been the 1988 film’s title, if Warner Bros. got their way. “‘Ghost House’ was actually almost the name of the first movie,” screenwriter Al Gough tells Variety. “They didn’t like ‘Beetlejuice.’ Tim really had to fight to call it ‘Beetlejuice.'”
Shrunken Head Guys
A broad-shouldered man with a tiny shrunken head first appears in the Neitherworld Waiting Room (and shrinks Beetlejuice’s head) at the end of the first film. In the sequel, Bob leads an office full of yellow-suited shrunken head guys, each wearing a red nametag. Those nametags are actually references to producers of the film, from Brad (Pitt) to Al (Gough). “The editor did that in post,” Gough told Variety. “They told me about it at the premiere!” Those aren’t the only real-life names that made it into the film: Gough and co-writer Miles Millar called Lydia and Rory’s couples therapist “Dr. Glickman,” after their longtime friend and Miramax CEO Jon Glickman (who also produced Burton’s series “Wednesday”).
Miss Shannon’s School for Girls
Before Lydia floats up the stairs in her school uniform in “Beetlejuice,” she’s seen leaving Miss Shannon’s School for Girls. The esteemed institution makes a return in the sequel, as Astrid rides her bike past its sign following Charles’ funeral.
Opening Shot
Both “Beetlejuice” and its sequel open with the camera panning over Winter River, Conn. as the opening titles flash across the screen. Of course, the original film is actually showing the Maitland’s scale model of the town, which makes its return when Astrid discovers it in the Deetz family attic.
Handbook for the Recently Deceased
Barbara and Adam Maitland originally use the handbook to navigate life as ghosts, and it plays a similar key role in the sequel. Astrid first discovers the literature in Jeremy’s bedroom (and he didn’t get it from a thrift store, like he claims). She’s tricked into reading an incantation from the book as she enters the afterlife, but later uses it to her advantage by using it to nullify Beetlejuice’s marriage contract with Lydia.
Lydia’s Wedding Dress
Beetlejuice hasn’t given up on his dream of marrying Lydia. After she signs a contract agreeing to marry him in exchange for his help rescuing Astrid from the afterlife, Beetlejuice hijacks her wedding to Rory and decks her out in a red wedding dress that looks an awful lot like the one she wears in the first film.
Charles’ Death
This last one’s less of an Easter egg and more of an explanation. While Lydia’s father Charles is dead in the sequel, actor Jeffrey Jones is still very much alive — but there’s a pretty good reason he’s not back for this film. Jones was charged with soliciting a minor to pose for nude photos in 2003. He pleaded no contest and was sentenced to five years’ probation, counseling and registering as a sex offender. He was arrested in 2004 and 2010 for failing to update his sex offender registration.
That said, the character Charles still appears in the 2024 film — first in an animated sequence depicting his death (he survives a plane crash, only to get eaten by a shark), and later in the afterlife (without a head). Gough says he and Millar found Charles’ death to be a creative way they could incorporate the stop-motion animation Burton has used in many projects: “We thought, ‘Oh, this is a great way to put that in the movie and tell the backstory of Charles.’ The idea of crashing and getting eaten by a shark was Tim’s own worst fear of death. So he thought, ‘Okay, the shark just takes his head off, and we’re off to the races.'”
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