Michael Keaton and Tim Burton teamed up for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, a sequel that took 36 years to materialise. But, the Batman actor is reflecting on some prior regrets, stating that his performance in 2019’s Dumbo “sucked”. With little more than $350 million in revenue at the global box office, the live-action version of the Disney classic received a mixed response from critics and was viewed as a financial setback for the firm.
In addition to filmmaker Burton, who also oversaw the 2019 live-action Dumbo remake, Keaton was joined in the conversation by his Beetlejuice Beetlejuice co-stars Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara.
The 72-year-old told The New York Times, “I love working with Tim so much, but I don’t think we ever really analyzed why we work pretty well together; we just do. I think I let him down on one movie, but that’s just me, and it bugs me to this day. I was clueless on Dumbo. I sucked in Dumbo.” To which Burton added, “I don’t even know what you’re talking about. But whatever.”
Following their collaboration on the 1988 Beetlejuice movie, Keaton and Burton reunited to work on the 1989 DC Comics hit Batman and its 1992 follow-up Batman Returns. A number of years later, Burton recast Keaton as the evil V.A. Vandevere in his Dumbo remake of Disney’s 1941 animated masterpiece. The character owned a carnival, bought the titular elephant, and used him as a tourist trap.
Keaton’s disappointment with Dumbo is similar to the feelings of Burton, who has been outspoken about how unpleasant the process of creating a Disney tentpole of that magnitude was in the years after the movie’s 2019 theatrical premiere. Burton said in a recent interview with Variety that he thought about calling it quits on his filmmaking career after the movie. He claimed that the impending release of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice was responsible for “re-energising” his love of filmmaking.
Although Keaton doesn’t necessarily have positive memories of his performance in Dumbo, he has different feelings about his most recent collaboration with Burton. According to Keaton’s prior statement to GamesRadar, the sequel boasts a “stronger story”.
The Deetz family returns to Winter River in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice following the untimely death of Charles Deetz. After Astrid, Lydia’s rebellious teenage daughter finds the enigmatic town model in the attic and unintentionally opens the door to the Afterlife, releasing Betelgeuse, Lydia’s world is completely flipped.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is set to be released in theatres on September 6.
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