Jenna Ortega has been tacking numerous major projects for both film and television. Now she’s set to star in a follow-up to a true classic. As fans likely know already, Jenna Ortega is set to have a role in Tim Burton’s upcoming film Beetlejuice Beetlejuice AKA Beetlejuice 2 and she’s officially confirmed her part in the film.
Fans have been eager for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice details ever since the sequel was first greenlit. In the months following the completion of production, more details have come to light, and now Jenna Ortega is opening up about the project.
As shared via Vanity Fair, Ortega confirms that she’ll be playing the daughter of Lydia Deetz in the film. Winona Ryder played Lydia Deetz in the original 1988 installment, and having her daughter played by Jenna Ortega is just about perfect casting.
Here’s what Jenna Ortega shared about her Beetlejuice Beetlejuice character named Astrid Deetz:
“She’s weird, but in a different way and not in the way you’d assume, I would say,” Ortega began. She added that her character’s relationship with Winona Ryder‘s Lydia “is very important.”
“And it’s also really strange because it’s a lot of catching up and putting the pieces together of what’s gone on in Lydia’s life since, which is nice, I think, for anybody who loves the character and is excited to see her again,” Ortega adds.
“I wouldn’t say she’s bright and sunny at all,” she adds for anyone afraid that Jenna Ortega’s take would be too different from Lydia.
“She doesn’t go to the opposite end of the spectrum, but any kid who becomes a teenager wants to be removed from their parents,” she explained. “I think they instantly just fight whatever it is that their parent loves.”
“So I think it’s a little bit of that. I’m not wearing pink and a cheerleader, but I am a little bit against my mom’s history or past. We butt heads quite a bit,” Ortega added.
“To play her daughter and also have to be like, ‘Mom … ,’ and roll your eyes was definitely more challenging for me as an actor, but super fun to play,” Ortega shared regarding working with Ryder.
It’s definitely an exciting tease of what’s to come while we wait for the film’s first trailer. In the meantime, fans can rest assured knowing that Beetlejuice 2 will be hitting theaters with familiar stars including Michael Keaton later this year on September 6, 2024. Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional updates as we have them.