Beetlejuice Beetlejuice earns a PG-13 rating for violent content, macabre and bloody images, & more

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, the long-awaited sequel to director Tim Burton’s 1988 classic Beetlejuice (watch it HERE), has officially received its rating from the Motion Picture Association ratings board – and it’s the rating you’ve probably been expecting. While the original film was rated PG, it would definitely have been a PG-13 if it were released today, and that’s exactly the rating the new film has received, a PG-13. What’s interesting is the reason given for this rating: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice has been rated PG-13 for violent content, macabre and bloody images, strong language, some suggestive material and brief drug use.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice was in development hell for decades before it finally got made. In 1990, Jonathan Gems was hired to write a sequel that was going to be titled Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian. Burton considered having Daniel Waters rewrite that script, Pamela Norris did rewrite it, and Warner Bros. offered Kevin Smith the chance to do another rewrite. He turned it down. Seth Grahame-Smith was hired to write and produce a new version of a sequel in 2011. Mike Vukadinovich was brought on to rewrite his script in 2017.

Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, co-creators and co-showrunners of Wednesday, have written the screenplay for Beetlejuice 2 that was actually filmed. Brad Pitt’s Plan B is producing the sequel, which filmed in London before moving to Vermont and Massachusetts.

Here’s the official synopsis: Beetlejuice is back! 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.

Michael Keaton is back as Beetlejuice and is joined in the cast by Winona Ryder, reprising the role of Lydia Deetz; Catherine O’Hara, back as Lydia’s stepmother Delia; Jenna Ortega as Lydia’s daughter Astrid, Justin Theroux as a fellow named Rory,  Monica Bellucci as Beetlejuice’s wife and Willem Dafoe as a law enforcement officer in the afterlife. Arthur Conti is also in there, in an unspecified role. 

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is set to reach theatres on September 6th. Will you be catching it on the big screen? What do you think of the reasons given for the PG-13 rating? Let us know by leaving a comment below.