Michael Keaton Says 'Beetlejuice 2' Is ‘Most Fun I've Had Working in a Movie' in a Long Time

The actor said he and director Tim Burton agreed "it has to be done as close to the way we made it the first time"

Michael Keaton is ecstatic to be reprising his classic character in Beetlejuice 2.

While out at Empire's VIP event on Saturday, the actor gushed over just how amped he is to be back at it as the mischievous ghost and "bio-exorcist."

"Beetlejuice is the most f---in’ fun you can have working. It’s so fun, it’s so great. And you know what it is? We’re doing it exactly like we did the first movie," Keaton, 71, said of the 1998 original, directed by Tim Burton, who is also back for the second installment.

"[Burton] and I were talking about it years and years ago, never telling anybody. We’ve both said we’re doing it many times. We both agreed, if it happens, it has to be done as close to the way we made it the first time. Making stuff up, making stuff happen, improvising and riffing, but literally handmade stuff like people creating things with their hands and building something."

"F---in’ great," he added. "It’s the most fun I’ve had working on a movie in I can’t tell you how long."

Saturday's event featured an advanced screening of The Flash, where Keaton reprises another iconic role — his wildly popular version of Batman from 1989's title film, which was also screened.

Related: 'The Flash' First Reactions: Critics Praise Michael Keaton's Return as Batman in 'Ambitious' Movie

News of the Beetlejuice sequel was officially announced last month, with Winona Ryder also returning for her beloved role. Jenna Ortega and Justin Theroux were also announced to be joining the cast.

The long-awaited sequel comes after multiple failed attempts at a second movie, including a script for Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian in the 1990s, according to The Week. In the 2010s, there was another movement to revive the characters for a sequel, but production stalled, and in 2019, Burton told USA Today he doubted Beetlejuice 2 would be made.

Then in 2022, Deadline reported that Brad Pitt's production company, Plan B, had signed on.

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Related: ‘Beetlejuice 2’: All About the Sequel Starring Michael Keaton and Jenna Ortega

In March 2023, multiple outlets reported that Ortega was in talks to star in the Beetlejuice sequel, playing the daughter of Ryder's character. When the film was officially announced by Warner Bros. two months later, the Wednesday star was indeed billed as “Lydia’s daughter.”

Days later, news broke that Monica Bellucci, who is rumored to be dating Burton, is among the new cast members in the sequel. The Mafia Mamma star is set to play Beetlejuice’s wife.

Willem Dafoe also joined the cast and is believed to be playing a law enforcement officer in the afterlife, per The Hollywood Reporter.

Beetlejuice 2 is set to be released in theaters on Sept. 6, 2024.

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