Though it featured a number of returning faces, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice writer Alfred Gough explains why the Maitlands didn’t appear in the horror-comedy sequel. Picking back up with the Deetz family 36 years after their first encounter with Betelgeuse, Lydia (Winona Ryder) must conquer her fears of the bio-exorcist while grappling with a troubled relationship with her daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega). In the original movie, Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin’s Barbara and Adam Maitland were a couple who became recently deceased, leaving the Deetz family to move into their former home, to their annoyance.
As Beetlejuice Beetlejuice finally manifested in theaters for audiences, Gough revealed to Entertainment Weekly why the Maitlands had no cameo in the sequel. The co-writer explains that while the pair’s potential return was discussed and present in early drafts, it was agreed that the first film gave the pair a fulfilling story, and their absence would avoid questions about their return or the potential of falling into the trappings of fan-service. Check out Gough’s full recollection below.
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 they’re ghosts. So they kind of needed to look like they were 35, which was never going to happen. I think Tim felt, and Miles and I agreed, that their story had been told. So how do we move on from that?
The first movie is really about the Maitlands. It was really Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis’ movie for a good [portion]. They’re the protagonists who called Beetlejuice against the Deetz family. So he said he really wanted to focus on them. He wasn’t interested in doing fan service or being slavish. So I think he was very much about, how do we tell the next iteration of the story?
I think we even threw in a joke where [Astrid] goes, “How convenient!” We tried to find ways, could we nod to the Maitlands? I think Tim was finally like, “Let’s not do that. We have a reason why they’re not there anymore. So let’s just move on from that.”
How Did Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Explain The Maitlands’ Absence?
The couple did receive a heartwarming nod from Lydia.
Within the runtime of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, it is revealed that Adam and Barbara have passed on to the afterlife with the help of Lydia and potentially the Deetzs, having found a loophole around being forced to haunt the home for centuries before passing on. Despite this, the second act does see a touching moment where Lydia and Astrid find some understanding in the attic amidst their conflict, where Lydia references the Maitlands while fondly discussing the Winter River model. As such, the couple are respectfully touched upon in the story beyond Astrid’s jab.
Save for make-up, there was little extensive SFX work to make the cast seem younger.
Arguably, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice‘s handling of the Maitlands’ fates is ideal amidst much debate about returning characters as, save for the older Deetzs, Betelgeuse, and ghostly characters who could be present with little alterations to their likeness, including the headless Charles Deetz ghost, the cast is composed of new characters. Save for make-up, there was little extensive SFX work used to make the cast seem younger, as has been seen in the Star Wars, Marvel, DC franchises and, most recently, Alien Romulus‘ Ian Holm appearance. As such, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice has escaped the scrutiny and distracting discourse of these practices brought to these features.
More focused on character than fan service, one of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice‘s strengths was its focus on furthering its cast’s story, even Keaton’s ever-sleazy, ever-unchanging Ghost with the Most. With a focus on family woes and breaking free of toxic relationships, the sequel manages to create a captivating hook that doesn’t rely on recapturing old iconography. As such, while one last reunion with the Maitlands may have been welcomed, it is clear their omission was for the best.
Source: EW
