Tim Burton reveals the real reason he didn't cast Alec Baldwin in Beetlejuice 2

Beetlejuice is officially back and fans are loving it - however, some familiar faces from the 1988 original are missing this time around.

One star who didn't make it back for the sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, is Alec Baldwin.

Baldwin had played Adam Maitland in the original movie, alongside Geena Davis as his wife, Barbara Maitland, but neither character appears in the 2024 follow-up, Beetlejuice 2.

Despite the Maitlands being pretty vital to the plot of the original film, after their car crashes and they become the reason viewers are taken into the world of the dead, director Tim Burton has revealed why they are not included in the new film.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice was notably missing the Maitlands. Credit: Jaime Nogales/Medios y Media/Getty Images

Other stars of the first film, including Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, and Michael Keaton have returned to Beetlejuice 2, along with new faces like Jenna Ortega joining the cast.

In the movie, Ryder's character Lydia explains that the Maitlands have found a "loophole" that allowed them to move on in the afterlife.

Davis previously gave her reasoning for why she and Baldwin were not going to be in the sequel, telling Entertainment Tonight: "I’m not in the remake. Oh, you were expecting that I would be?

"Yeah, no, you know what? Because my theory is that ghosts don’t age … Not that I have!"

Alec Baldwin did not return for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Credit: John Lamparski/Getty Images

However, it's not the fact that the ghosts might look 35 years older than the last time we saw them according to Burton, who has revealed the real reason why the Maitlands didn't make the cut.

He explained to People that he "didn’t want to just tick any boxes", adding: "So even though they were such an amazing integral part of the first one, I was focusing on something else."

It also turns out that an early draft of the script did feature a cameo from Baldwin and Davis, which was later written out.

Screenwriter Alfred Gough told EW: "It's funny with the Maitlands because we asked Tim and we went back and forth.

"There was a version where they just showed up at the end, but the problem is they're ghosts. So they kind of needed to look like they were 35, which was never going to happen. I think Tim felt, and Miles and I agreed, that their story had been told. So how do we move on from that?"

Geena Davis shared her own theory for why the Maitlands were written out of the sequel. Credit: Christopher Polk/Getty Images for Turner

He added: "He wasn't interested in doing fan service or being slavish. So I think he was very much about, how do we tell the next iteration of the story?"

Gough added that they of course had to let fans know why the ghosts weren't in it any more, explaining: "I think we even threw in a joke where [Astrid] goes, 'How convenient!'

"We tried to find ways, could we nod to the Maitlands? I think Tim was finally like, 'Let's not do that. We have a reason why they're not there anymore. So let's just move on from that.'"

Tim Burton wanted to move the story on with new stars including Jenna Ortega. Credit: Gregg DeGuire/WireImage/Getty Images

Despite not having two of the main characters from the original movie, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice has stormed the box office since its release, already outgrossing the original after less than a week.

The movie was released in theaters on Friday, September 6, and has done well with audiences and critics alike.

Featured image credit: John Lamparski/Getty Images