The film features Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, with Jenna Ortega, and Willem Dafoe and will be screened on the 28th of August in the Sala Grande.
It’s official! The race to the upcoming Venice International Film Festival is on. And Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, directed by the pioneering visionary that is Tim Burton will be the Opening Film, screening Out of Competition, of the 81st edition of the festival, which is under the artistic umbrella of La Biennale di Venezia,
The festival has been under the artistic direction of Alberto Barbera since 2012 and during his tenure has seen more stars and award winners than ever participating in the line-up.
The latest by Burton, reuniting the original Beetlejuice cast members and adding a few new ones, will have its world premiere on Wednesday August 28th, in the Sala Grande at the Palazzo del Cinema on the iconic Lido di Venezia. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is a Warner Bros. Pictures presentation and will be released only in theaters and IMAX on September 6, 2024 in North America, and internationally beginning 4 September 2024. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures.
After an unexpected family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia's life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid, discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened. With trouble brewing in both realms, it's only a matter of time until someone says Beetlejuice's name three times and the mischievous demon returns to unleash his very own brand of mayhem. How do you say “Can’t wait!” in Italian? English is such a cool language for throwaway idioms like that — Italian, not so much.
Anyway, for the film Keaton returns to his iconic role alongside Oscar nominee Winona Ryder (Stranger Things, Little Women) as Lydia Deetz and two-time Emmy winner Catherine O’Hara (Schitt's Creek, The Nightmare Before Christmas) as Delia Deetz, with new cast members including Justin Theroux (Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi, The Leftovers), Monica Bellucci (Spectre, The Matrix films), Arthur Conti (House of the Dragon) in his feature film debut, along with Emmy nominee Jenna Ortega (Wednesday, Scream VI) as Lydia’s daughter, Astrid, and Oscar nominee Willem Dafoe (Poor Things, At Eternity’s Gate).
About the announcement, Barbera said: “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice marks the long-awaited return of one of the most iconic characters of Tim Burton’s cinema, but also the happy confirmation of the extraordinary visionary talent and the masterly realization of one of the most fascinating auteurs of his time. The Venice Biennale is honored and proud to host the world premiere of a work that features a surprising swing of creative imagination and driving hallucinatory rhythm.”
Cryptic as ever, Burton added, “I’m very excited by this. It means a lot to me to have the world premiere of this film at the Venice Film Festival.”
Tim Burton, photographed by © Steve Schofield
Burton is considered a genre unto himself, mixing fantasy with animation and adding in more than a touch of poignancy to all his stories. For this film, he directs from a screenplay by Alfred Gough & Miles Millar (Wednesday), story by Gough & Millar and Seth Grahame-Smith (The LEGO® Batman Movie), based on characters created by Michael McDowell & Larry Wilson. The film’s producers are Marc Toberoff, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Tommy Harper and Burton, with Sara Desmond, Katterli Frauenfelder, Gough, Millar, Larry Wilson, Laurence Senelick and Brad Pitt executive producing.
For more about Burton, check out this oldie but goodie piece on ENinaRothe.com.
This year’s Venice International Film Festival will run from August 28th to the 7th of September. For more info, check out their website.
All images courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia, used with permission.