Beetlejuice 2 starring Michael Keaton and Jenny Ortega in development

A sequel to one of the best Halloween movies is apparently finally happening, and the cast sounds genuinely incredible.

You’ve already read the headline - it’s Beetlejuice 2. Well, according to The Hollywood Reporter, anyway. At the time of writing, the sequel to the 1988 comedy hasn’t been officially announced, but there’s been plenty of talk of it over the years. Back in 2016, Burton said that “the film is a go and has been approved by the Warner Bros. team”, but a rep quickly clarified that he “did not confirm Beetlejuice 2 as the movie is not in development” (thanks, Bloody Disgusting).

Jenny Ortega will be returning to Netflix for season two of Wednesday in the future - take a look at the teaser below.

According to The Hollywood Reporter’s sources, Tim Burton is expected to return as the sequel’s director, and Batman star Michael Keaton, who played Betelgeuse himself in the first film (yes, that’s actually how his name is spelled), will also be involved. The star of the hit Netflix series Wednesday, Jenny Ortega, will allegedly be playing the daughter of Lydia Deetz (who was portrayed by Winona Ryder in the original movie). Given that Lydia was a teenager in the 1988 film, it sounds like the sequel could take place after a significant time-skip.

So, why now after all this time? Reportedly, the sequel “has gone through various iterations over the years”, and has seen a number of writers come and go. What’s more, a budget still hasn’t been set for it, despite the fact that the crew is reportedly aiming to start filming in London in late May or early June.

Assuming that the rumours are true, it hopefully won’t be too long until we get some actual confirmation of the sequel being in development. It may have been almost 35 years since Beetlejuice released, but better late than never, right?