I watched ‘Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice' and knew two things. One, no one but Tim Burton could've directed that chaos symphony. Two, Warner Bros was going to ride this nostalgia train straight into the afterlife—and now, we've got confirmation: Beetlejuice 3 is a go. Cue the undead applause.
Let's not bury the lede—Warner Bros' co-chairs Pam Abdy and Michael De Luca confirmed that yes, a third installment is in development. “The ink might not be dry on the deals yet,” De Luca warned, “but [it should be happening] imminently.” Translation: it's happening. Fast. Maybe too fast.
The Studio Deal That Nearly Buried Beetlejuice
Here's what makes this news taste like grave dust wrapped in Hollywood glitter. Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice wasn't even supposed to hit theaters. It was pegged for Max, Warner's streaming service, until Abdy and De Luca stepped in and twisted the fate wheel. Suddenly, Burton was on board—but not without compromises.
Instead of his desired $150M budget, the studio convinced him to go leaner. The cast—Jenna Ortega, Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara—took backend deals over big upfront checks. A gamble? Maybe. But it paid off in poltergeist gold.
Box Office Resurrection: The Sequel That Beat the Original in 3 Days
Let's put this in perspective: Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice made $41M in a single Saturday. That's not a joke, that's an exorcism of expectations. By the end of the weekend, it had made $110M domestically. Eventually, it soared past $300M in the U.S.—smashing the original's global lifetime gross in just three days. Wild.
And critics? They didn't just like it. They called it Burton's best-reviewed movie in over a decade. That's huge. Because the past few years haven't exactly been kind to him (Dumbo, anyone?).
But Here's the Nightmare: Is Creativity Being Coffin-Shopped?
There's something bittersweet here. Yes, we're getting Beetlejuice 3. But what we're not getting—at least not right now—is a new Burton original.
Remember Edward Scissorhands? Big Fish? Ed Wood? Those weren't sequels. They were worlds. Weird, sticky, imaginative worlds. And now? We're stuck rebooting what already worked. Like a Netflix algorithm haunted by its own success metrics.
Because here's the uncomfortable truth: Hollywood doesn't just love reboots. It's addicted to them. And the moment a sequel prints money, everyone panics and greenlights another, faster than you can say “Beetlejuice” three times.
Why Warner Might Rush—and Why That's a Problem
When a film earns $300M and rave reviews, the pressure to capitalize is unreal. Warner's likely already got merch mockups and viral TikTok concepts lined up. But filmmaking—especially Burton filmmaking—isn't supposed to be rushed.
Burton's brilliance lies in the eerie details. The handmade sets. The macabre humor. The visual poetry of decay. If Beetlejuice 3 becomes a fast-tracked, committee-led product… well, we've seen that horror film before. (It was called Dark Shadows.)
Burton's Gothic Universe Is More Than IP
This isn't just about sequels. It's about the soul of Burton's work. At its best, his films channel misfits, ghosts, loners, dreamers. They're about the quiet grief behind loud costumes.
Beetlejuice was never meant to become a franchise machine. It was lightning in a black-and-white-striped bottle. And now we're opening that bottle again—hoping there's still magic inside.
Final Words Before the Curtain Call
So here we are. Beetlejuice 3 is real. Burton's probably directing. The cast is game. The hype is high.
But before we celebrate too loudly, let's pause and ask: What kind of ghost story do we want? One that revisits the past—or one that invents new nightmares?
If originality still matters in Hollywood's haunted house, we'd better start screaming about it now.
Would you risk a sequel if it meant losing a visionary? Comment below.
Yes let’s go forward with beetle juice 3 and make were people will crack up laughing for that being said let’s have a new chapter in the book and the book might close after 3 who knows let’s make it interesting please
When is Beetlejuice 3 coming out. I think Michael Keaton is a Great Actor when he does that Beetlejuice. He really knows how to do it. But I hope that Beetlejuice 3 isn’t That Scary.