Although Keaton isnt as outwardly eccentric, he has a similar tendency towards unmediated stream-of-consciousness responses, and blunt plain-speaking both the opposite of slick Hollywood schmooze. Michael Keaton made an icon out of the title character with less than 20 minutes of screen time. There's a lot of stuff that happened behind the scenes and many things that fans don't know about the movie. BEETLEJUICE WAS NEARLY CALLED SCARED SHEETLESS. Did they swap bat tales? . "Michael Keaton is basically an ordinary guy, a regular human being," Burton, who reunited with his Beetlejuice star, said around Batman's release. how much did michael keaton make for beetlejuice. Well, Michael Keaton may have played the starring role in Beetlejuice (credited as Betelgeuse), but did you know he has just a minuscule 17 minutes screentime in this 92-minute film? I think she understands me." Beetlejuice. As the actor recalled to Charlie Rose during a 2014 interview, he actually had a lot to do with the creation of Betelgeuse (as his name is actually spelled in the film). Our DVD and Blu-ray sales estimates are based on weekly retail surveys, which we use to build a weekly market share estimate for each title we are tracking. Burton did just that, and it worked a charm. An afterlife waiting room abounds . Michael Keaton Only Spent Two Weeks On Set Interestingly, despite Michael Keaton receiving top billing for Beetlejuice, he appeared in less than 20% of the movie and only rocked up around the 25-minute mark. It must have been particularly hard for them, facing so much scrutiny during Batman, but Keaton insists he wasnt aware of it or not until he happened to pick up the business section of a newspaper and saw a cartoon of his face in an article suggesting that he, personally, would damage Warner Bros stock. "The only one I think I can deal with is Edgar Allan Poe's daughter. Oscar nominee Michael Keaton says he's ready to get reacquainted with one of his iconic roles. So he would never do anything just for the money? Burton ended up defining his zany gothic visual style when he directed the film. He also creates video essays and supercuts for the YouTube channel I Got Touched at the Cinema. I do what interests me.. After becoming known for his hyper-comedic performances in the early 80s, Keaton switched to dramatic roles first as a recovering drug addict in Clean And Sober (a flop) and then as Batman (one of the biggest box office hits of its day). Wait a minute, shes really smart and I need to talk to her about this, he says pointing at me, although I suspect this is more about John Hughes than my intellect. Compare this performance with other movies. It's showtime! Considering the movie is named after his character, Michael Keaton has a surprisingly small amount of screen time as Beetlejuice only 17 minutes. I suppose you could say that's the thing I'm most proud of.". Burton jokingly suggested Scared Sheetless as a title and was mortified when executives actually considered using it. The character of Beetlejuice preceded Michael Keaton's involvement in the film. Commenting on this piece? Swear to God! Two, Betelgeuse was meant to assault Lydia and not marry her as per the final version. In 1990, Burton hired Jonathan Gems to write Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian. This is major news for a sequel that's been long-rumored but never fulfilled until now. But maybe this is just another of Keatons surprises? The year prior to that movie's release, Keaton worked with director Tim Burton on the fondly remembered supernatural comedy " Beetlejuice ." For years, rumors of a sequel have run rampant. Beetlejuice was a critical and commercial success, grossing US$74.7 million from a budget of US$15 million. Photograph: Moviestore/Rex/Shutterstock, With Melanie Griffith in Pacific Heights (1990). Director Tim Burtons sophomore feature-length effort sees Academy Award nominee Michael Keaton at his kookiest, creepiest, and most unrecognizable in the (sort of) title role of a self-described bio-exorcist whom the recently deceased Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland (Geena Davis) mistakenly believe will help them rid their home of a snobbish family. Just thinking about things, asking what you want, what you dont want, how am I going to get to there? Future two-time Academy Award nominee Winona Ryder also had very little experience making films when she starred in Beetlejuice as Lydia Deetz, who initially becomes the sole seer of the Maitlands spirits when she moves into their house with her father (Jeffrey Jones) and stepmother (Schitts Creek cast member Catherine OHara). Was he deliberately trying to get out of the shadow of the bat signal, or did he just like the scripts? With buzz building for a possible follow-up to Beetlejuice, director Tim Burton's 1988 horror . Keaton spent two weeks filming his part. How much money is Michael Keaton worth at the age of 71 and what's his real net worth now? [After kicking down a model tree] "Nice f***ing model!" Beetlejuice. I interviewed Burton a few years ago and, meeting Keaton, it is obvious why the two men feel such an affinity (they are currently working together again, on Burtons live-action remake of Dumbo). 2. So what are you waiting for? And I said, 'What?' Michael Keaton is an American actor who is best known for his roles in films such as 'Mr. Mom,' 'Beetlejuice,' 'Batman' and 'Birdman.' Updated: Apr 14, 2021 Photo: John Shearer/Getty Images. Heres the amazing part about it: He never saw any of it. During production, Keaton improvised a lot of his dialogue. By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. 5. The song by Harry Belafonte used during the dinner party possession scene is one of the most memorable moments in the movie: But viewers can also faintly hear film composer Danny Elfman singing "Day-O" in the opening credit sequence when the Geffen logo appears (Elfman's vocals were added during post-production): Also, when Glenn Shadix who played Otho, passed away at the age of 58 in 2010, "Day-O" was the last song played at his memorial service. Tim Burtons paranormal comedy Beetlejuice is one of the most beloved cult classics in Hollywood history. His family visited him, and there have been girlfriends (he is in a relationship now, but its the one subject he refuses to discuss), but in the main he was on his own. It was mostly good, he says. Ryder was only 17 years old when she filmed Beetlejuice. Also, instead of the climatic scene where Beetlejuce tries to marry Lydia (Winona Ryder), in the original script he tries to rape her. But when he was approached with the script, he wasn't sure about jumping on board. The Oscar-nominated actor, who turned 70 on. When I mention one particularly intense scene, he shrugs: I think Im OK in it. 15. Keaton played the editor of the Boston Globes investigative journalism team in the 2015 movie Spotlight, not the editor of the paper itself, as originally stated. Maybe we're all going to be dead. All the other actors including Michael Keaton, Catherine OHara, Winona Ryder, and Sylvia Sidney turned down the script when they first read it. Ms. "California Gurl" herself, Katy Perry, as she recently said in a Q&A before her Hollywood Bowl concert earlier this month. Keatons Batman completely changed the way superheroes were portrayed in Hollywood movies, coining the reluctant, self-loathing alter ego that is still de rigueur 30 years later (Christian Bales Batman, Andrew Garfields Spider-Man, almost all of the X-Men). Beetlejuice is kind of a strange name when you think about it. Cue failed attempts at dressing up in bed sheets to frighten their unwanted housemates. Keaton spent two weeks filming his part. The actor, who turned 70 on Sunday, needed a lot of convincing to play the iconic character. However, she wasn't the first choice for Barbara. Keaton reels back in his chair, hands over his face. It's safe to say that without his unique quirks and ad-libs, Beetlejuice wouldn't have been quite the same. A year before he first donned the cape in Batman, this is truly Keaton at his wildest. Hadley, huh? 16. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Mr. A perfectly enormous gear comes barreling toward him. He has made a career out of taking the unpredictable route: you can never guess his next role, and then he never plays it the way youd expect. However, there have been talks that Burton will return for a Beetlejuice sequel, along with Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder. Burton met with Keaton, flew out to see OHara, and personally called Sidney in order to convince them to take their roles in the film. how much did michael keaton make for beetlejuice. However, when the subject turned to Beetlejuice during his own personal review of his career for GQ, he had this to say: When we did Beetlejuice, I had no idea what it was about. In that same oral history for CBC Radio, which was also part of a radio show called q, hosted by Tom Power, Larry Wilson (who also wrote 1991s The Addams Family) also talks about how they came up with the unique depiction of the hereafter as seen in Beetlejuice. Since Birdman, he has played the editor of the Boston Globes investigative journalism team in the 2015 ensemble movie Spotlight, which won a Best Picture Oscar; and he was a curveball choice as Ray Kroc, the man who turned McDonalds into a franchise, in 2016s too-little-seen The Founder. movie for Burton) and traded the New England setting of the original for a tropical one, in what eventually became known as "Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian.". If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Michael Keaton spent only two weeks filming. It didnt evolve into a comedy until Tim Burton became attached to direct and Michael Keaton signed on to star. Unfortunately, studio executives didnt like the idea of Sammy Davis, Jr. playing Betelgeuse and vetoed that decision. As he walks into a London hotel room on a grey Saturday morning, holding a cup of coffee, he looks strikingly different from the man I have spent four decades watching on screen: he has the trim, spry build of a wiry woodsman rather than a 66-year-old actor, thanks to half a lifetime spent in rural Montana, fishing and hunting. Were all here for a millisecond, so how bad can this be? he says, his drawn-out vowels (maaan, baaad) revealing his Pittsburgh origins. With Beetlejuice, Tim Burton took exactly the same approach. The famous snake scene was actually done before Michael Keaton was cast as the lead character. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. "When I did Night Shift, I improvised quite a bit because I would improvise at the audition so sometimes I would return to the original lines and then when I was on set I would improvise even more," he said. Keaton spent just two weeks shooting all of his scenes and has since called it the favorite role he's ever played. I wished Id had more, but then Sean told me he liked being an only child, he smiles. The script ends with a climactic scene where Beetlejuice wreaks havoc on the island by turning into a creature named "Juicifer," and Lydia summoning a giant tidal wave that washes the island clean of all the demonic creatures conjured by Beetlejuice. Really? he cries, bouncing out of his seat. While Beetlejuice is fondly remembered as a whimsical comedy, its original script leaned more towards the horror side of things. Geena Davis was the only cast member who was actually eager to sign up for Beetlejuice. The gear turns, fish-tailing, kicking up ooze and stuffing. A scene-stealer that plays the title role in a film? He rules, at least in his head. Pete Davidson And Chase Sui Wonders Have Spent A Lot Of Time Together, But Are They Getting Serious. One definitive example of this is the famous Day-O scene, which was apparently a more complex and problem-ridden process than you might have expected. The witch doctor shrinks Betelgeuses head and he quips, This might be a good look for me.. And I thought, Im in this job for the long run, I dont want this. He and McWilliams divorced in 1990. The studio thought he was serious and considered it. That would not be the only time during the making of Beetlejuice when he came at odds with the studio. His co-stars were apparently reluctant too, with Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder, among others, initially rejecting the opportunity. The man truly is full of surprises. This clever reversal of the haunted house movie formula is brimming with so much macabre imagination, you must be dying to know what it was like to make it, which we shall reveal with the following behind the scenes facts, starting with a glimpse at the movie it could have been. Do you know any other interesting things about Beetlejuice? Keaton literally spits out his coffee with laughter. However, that all changed when he was sent the script for Beetlejuice. You see, a lot of a film's marketability is in its title, so the studio wanted to make sure it was just right and didn't think Beetlejuice was catchy enough. A call from my editor: "They said maybe . "But since Tim told me to I did and then we dated and we're married and here we are today," he said. Even though the movie is called "Beetlejuice," the character only has 17 minutes of screen time out of a 92-minute running time. Michael Keaton had no clue what director Tim Burton was talking about when he was pitched Beetlejuice, so he turned it down several times. In fact, it's probably due to these contract issues that most movie stars are reluctant to sign long-term TV deals. It's remarkably similar to the makeup he wore for the movie "Beetlejuice". The studio eventually brought on Jonathan Gems (who went on to write the "Mars Attacks!" The next time you watch Beetlejuice and you get to the Day-O scene, keep in mind that when the shrimp hands come up to push the dinner guests faces, they are really pulling away from them. "Beetlejuice" is one of the funniest horror films ever made. Directors Tim Burton Starring Alec Baldwin, Michael Keaton, Robert Goulet Genres Comedy, Horror, Fantasy Subtitles None available This video is currently unavailable LOUD TICKING. Think Robin Williams and Jim Carreys energy levels combined, then add a tonne of makeup and outlandish costumes and you have Keatons Betelgeuse. Take a visual walk through their career and see 13 images of the characters they've voiced and listen to 4 clips that showcase their performances. My fathers side, the Scottish Protestant side? It was producer David Geffen who actually suggested Michael Keaton to the director, and it stuck. Reportedly, actresses Molly Ringwald, Diane Lane, Sarah Jessica Parker, Brooke Shields, and Jennifer Connelly all turned down the role of Lydia Deetz in Beetlejuice (maybe they thought the script was too weird?). by . For example, one person can be seen to have died from a snake bite while camping. 3. Before deciding on Michael Keaton, the producers considered Bill Murray, Jack Nicholson, Robin Williams, Jim Carrey, Tim Curry, Christopher Lloyd, and Dudley Moore. He currently resides in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, USA. How can that be? how much did michael keaton make for beetlejuice. This shouldn't come, as a surprise as Burton was renowned for casting his movies a little more differently than others. So, here are 10 fascinating behind-the-scenes facts from the making of Beetlejuice. Keaton is a famous actor that starred in movies such as Batman, The Founder, and Spotlight. To celebrate the film's 30th anniversary on March 30, Neill spoke with Yahoo Entertainment about how she created the smarmy, ghoulish, and altogether perfect face of everyone's favorite ghost . How many weeks do we spend doing the same thing over and over at work and being distinctively average? Kayjaid 9 mo. He was paid $5 million for his titular role as Batman. The final scene of Beetlejuice is sort of an epilogue. Alec BaldwinbeetlejuicecomedyCultGeena DavisMichael KeatonTim Burton. Cinemablend is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Actor Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton) commands the world with a snap of his fingers in the . They possess the bunch into performing a dance number to the aforementioned Calypso hit by Harry Belafonte, which ends with their shrimp meals forming beastly hands that attack them, pushing them back. Theres me taking a pause: I really like life, doing things, having a normal life. He can morph into pretty much any size or shape, swap voices in a split second, and go from charming to terrifying just as quickly. Of all the great Michael Keaton performances I could choose as a favorite (such as his time as Batman or his Oscar-nominated role in 2014s Birdman), it still has to be the manic brilliance he displays in Beetlejuice. Visit our corporate site (opens in new tab). When you see [the movie], you understand probably why it was hard for him to explain, Keaton said of the beloved horror-comedy about ghosts and the obnoxious poltergeist, Beetlejuice. OK. You have to buy into the programme.. This . Dealing with the mental side of things? I didnt really like sleepovers I liked sleeping outside.. Catherine OHara met her future husband, production designer Bo Welch, on the set of Beetlejuice. And it takes a lot of stumbling around, and it takes discipline.. As such, it's hard for me to isolate a given scene or shot," he said. SERGIO PEREIRA is a speculative fiction author and journalist from Johannesburg, South Africa. Its like making movies with Tim [Burton], he says, those eyebrows rising in various directions. When Keaton was last year added to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Sean gave the speech: Ive seen everything from Batman to bath time when I was a young kid. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Scene Stealers: Michael Keaton in Beetlejuice. One of them veers suddenly toward him, and though Adam jumps out of the way, the gear snags his trouser leg and shreds it. Before OHara was cast, the producers considered Sigourney Weaver, Linda Hamilton, Laura Dern, and Goldie Hawn for the role. I dont hate it, but its never my first choice. Heck, you only need to look at why Keaton dropped out of Batman Forever, saying the script was terrible and he just wasn't interested. Truth be told, Alley isn't the first or the last star to lose out on a role because of a TV show commitment. Apparently, this was at the behest of the studio execs, who felt the audience wouldn't know the snake was actually Betelgeuse and not some other random monster. But despite the fact that the Maitlands died by drowning, they appear dry in the netherworld. NEXT:Wait 'Til They Get A Load Of Me: 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About Tim Burton's Batman Movies. But, yeah, I would have loved to have worked with him. When Tim Burton first signed on to helm Beetlejuice, his top choice for the title role was Sammy Davis, Jr., of whom hed been a huge fan since childhood. I said I want hair that looks like I stuck my finger in an electrical socket. And I said I want mold because Tim said he lives under rocks,' Keaton recalled. Id be happy having me as a kid. Burton's original pick for the part was Cheers star Kirstie Alley. In fact, he reportedly ad-libbed about 90% of his lines. While Pee-wee's Big Adventure announced Burton's arrival in Hollywood, his second feature is the one that kicked the doors in and endeared him to the alternative culture. He got it immediately, Keaton said of the moment. The screenplay for Beetlejuice was originally written as a straight horror film. For a description of the different acting role types we use to categorize acting perfomances, see our Glossary. Not only was the name Michael Douglas taken, but Mike Keaton too, in the form of the famous broadcaster. Michael Keaton talks about meeting Tim Burton for the first time and needing to be convinced that he would be perfect for the creepy casanova/bio-exorcist Beetlejuice. While we can't imagine anyone else but Michael Keaton as Betelgeuse nowadays, Tim Burton originally wanted someone else for the part: the legendary Rat Pack member Sammy Davis Jr. In the sequel, the franchise elevated his paycheck to $11 million. 7. His walk is reminiscent of a roosters strut, with his chest puffed out and a bounce on his toes; that swagger we saw in 2014s Birdman, for which Keaton won a Golden Globe as the eponymous former superhero actor, was not a put on, it turns out. Birth Place: Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, USA Trending: 1,399th This Week Michael Keaton is a voice actor known for voicing Ken, Porco Rosso, and Chick Hicks. Most movies go through various rewrites and creative changes from what eventually becomes the final product and Beetlejuice was no different. My niece is called Hadley, he says, shaking my hand, and embarks on a winding digression about Ernest Hemingway, whose first wife was called Hadley, and various Hemingway descendants whom Keaton has met over the years, and do I know them (I do not), and how I really ought to meet them. That would have been an experience.. Tim Burton wasn't to be deterred and headed off to meet with Keaton and the rest is history. Being around that is so much fun, you just want to be in that environment.. Don't miss a beat. After Keaton joined up and additional footage was shot, it was decided to use a snake that looked more like Betelgeuse. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Michael Keaton: My boredom level is fairly low., Michael Keaton: There was a lot of bad taste in the 90s and I contributed to that, With Winona Ryder in Beetlejuice (1988). The name. He writes reviews, features, and lists for Screen Rant and Game Rant. The market share is converted into a weekly sales estimate based on industry reports on the overall size of the market, including reports published in Media Play News. Sadly, she wasn't able to take the role because the show's producers wouldn't let her out of her contract. Michael Keaton had no clue what director Tim Burton was talking about when he was pitched Beetlejuice, so he turned it down several times. Jun 29, 2022. is aquafresh toothpaste discontinued . He was always hanging out in groups and going to someones house, I remember that, he says. It's amazing. It sounds like Mr. Burton is quite the salesman maybe that's how he has convinced execs that he needs to cast Johnny Depp in nearly all of his projects. The ad I saw in the paper was for Betelgeuse. He has a strong interest in comic books, film, music, and comedy. Tim Burton's Beetlejuice is the film which put director & Michael Keaton on the map. Everyone knows if you say Beetlejuice's name three times he appears, but the number three is used multiple times in the film. Just that make up job still gives us nightmares.. "I have to say that Beetlejuice was one of those movies in which it gave all of us a chance to do our best work. If there is one reason to be glad that famed script doctor Warren Skaaren was brought in to lighten up the material, it is what the main antagonist would become instead. For example, if our weekly retail survey estimates that a particular title sold 1% of all units that week, and the industry reports sales of 1,500,000 units in total, we will estimate 15,000 units were sold of that title. Fortunately, someone came to their senses and decided to keep the original name of Beetlejuice. 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition . So there was that. Fox Searchlight. This is one of my favorite movies and I've thought a lot about this (but haven't done any research).