Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Actor Michael Keaton Speaks Out on New Costar Jenna Ortega

Michael Keaton became an icon for his performance as Beetlejuice in Tim Burton’s 1988 cult-classic, but he also helped launch his young co-star Winona Ryder to a new level of fame. Now, over 35 years later Keaton is back for the sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and this time he has another young co-star by his side: Jenna Ortega. 

Jenna Ortega has been confirmed to be playing Astrid Deetz in Beetlejuice 2, the daughter of Winona Ryder’s Lydia Deetz. Like Lydia, Astrid will find herself in the company of the “Bio-Exorcist” known as Beetlejuice:

“I don’t know how much I’m allowed to say, but I am Lydia Deetz’s daughter, so I’ll give that away,” Ortega told Vanity Fair in a recent interview “She’s weird, but in a different way and not in the way you’d assume, I would say. The relationship between Lydia (Ryder) and Astrid, my character, 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.”

Beyond those basic story premises, there’s very little we know about the details of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, aside from the cast being an exciting mix of returning actors (Keaton, Ryder, Catherine O’Hara) and promising new players (Ortega, Willem Dafoe, Justin Theroux, Burn Gorman and Monica Bellucci as Betejuice’s wife). However, in a recent interview the always-candid Michael Keaton had something to say about working with Jenna Ortega, and had nothing but the best to say: 

“Oh man, she’s good, she’s just got it, you know? She’s got the tone,” Keaton explained to ET. “She showed up and just immediately knew what the tone was and just slipped in like she does every day. She’s really special.”

Keaton also recently confirmed that he’s already seen a working cut of Beetlejuice 2, and so his words about Ortega’s performance in it aren’t just coming from the scenes they filmed on the set: 

“It’s just so fun and I’ve seen it now,” Keaton said. “I’m going to see it again after a couple of little tweaks in the editing room and I confidently say this thing is great.”