Tim Burton learned about Warner Bros.’ plans for a third Beetlejuice movie during a July 2025 interview, 3 months after the studio said development would begin soon. The director of both films responded: “Really? Nobody told me. Maybe I’ve been replaced.”
The studio’s announcement came in an April 11, 2025 Deadline interview with Warner Bros. leaders Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy. Asked about sequels to Minecraft and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, De Luca said: “Imminently. The ink might not be dry on the deals yet, but imminently.” His answer left the deals unfinished and gave no production date.
The 2024 sequel had earned $452,000,435 worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo’s all-releases total. It brought Burton back to the franchise he launched with the 1988 original, alongside Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder, with Jenna Ortega playing Lydia Deetz’s daughter, Astrid.
Burton’s response in The Hollywood Reporter’s July 23, 2025 interview went beyond surprise. “I love the characters, but I don’t necessarily see it,” he said of another film. He also expressed reluctance to hand it to someone else: “I feel very proprietary about everything I do, even if I don’t own the characters.”
Ortega, interviewed alongside him, was asked whether she’d make a third movie without Burton. “Oh, I would never,” she said.
As of October 2, 2026, there’s no announced director attachment, cast, writer, official title, plot, filming schedule or release date. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Beetlejuice remains a suggested title, and predictions of a 2027 or 2028 release are speculation.
The sequel’s Baby Beetlejuice ending and Astrid’s abilities have fueled possible story ideas, but no official third-film story has been disclosed. Catherine O’Hara, who played Delia Deetz in both movies, died on January 30, 2026, at 71. There’s been no announced decision about whether or how a third film would include Delia.
