Beetlejuice Beetlejuice continues to invite new interpretations, the latest one being that the horror movie has all the elements of a Hugh Grant romantic comedy. Tim Burton is no stranger to love stories, having created Corpse Bride, Edward Scissorhands, and Dark Shadows. Although the romance in the Sleepy Hollow director’s movies can be said to be twisted — as it usually involves a pairing between the living and the dead — real love can often be just as twisted. Beetlejuice 2‘s characters are all involved in one or several romantic pairings, with some taking more center focus than others.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’s reviews praise the chemistry between the characters and the story’s focus on their emotional connections. The short romance between Astrid and the killer ghost, Jeremy, was the latest addition to Beetlejuice‘s couples, hinting that no pairing will ever beat the Maitland’s perfect chemistry and relationship. However, as Beetlejuice 2‘s ending reaffirms, the franchise is held together by Michael Keaton’s Betelgeuse pursuing Winona Ryder’s Lydia. Whether intentionally or not, Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice follows the same formula as Hugh Grant’s Oscar-nominated rom-com, Four Weddings and a Funeral.

Beetlejuice 2 Uses The Same Romantic Beats As Four Weddings & A Funeral

Beetlejuice 2 uses the structure of Grant’s 1994 movie. The romantic comedy follows Grant’s character, Charles, and his group of single friends as they attend four weddings and a funeral over time. Throughout the events, Charles reunites with Carrie (Andie MacDowell), a woman he’d like to be with, but it’s never the right time. The same could be said about Betelgeuse and Lydia, as their meetings are echoed by their troubled history with these types of ceremonies. Beetlejuice 2 has a lot of similarities with Four Weddings & A Funeral, starting with the big events suggested by the title.

Beetlejuice 2
certainly is the horror movie with the most weddings, heavily hinting at the twisted love story underneath its surface.

Beetlejuice 2 has four weddings and a funeral, albeit not in the same order as Grant’s movie. Burton’s film starts with Charles Deetz’s funeral, and is followed by Betelgeuse and Delores’ wedding sequence; the Halloween wedding ceremony of Lydia and Rory; Betelgeuse and Lydia’s wacky wedding ceremony, and, finally, Astrid and Vlad’s dream wedding. Beetlejuice 2 certainly is the horror movie with the most weddings, heavily hinting at the twisted love story underneath its surface — one that actress Winona Ryder was rooting for. Ryder’s wish that the Beetlejuice pair was endgame is telling of the film’s secret romantic core.

Betelgeuse And Lydia’s Relationship Is A Star-Crossed Lovers Story In Beetlejuice 2

Not only does Beetlejuice 2 share romantic beats with Four Weddings and Funeral, but it does so with a myriad of rom-coms. Betelgeuse himself has a lot of characteristics of the romantic comedy protagonist, mainly that he wants to marry the woman he loves. Even if his intentions are tainted, as getting married will also free him from the Neitherworld, the fact is, he has been pinning for Lydia for 36 years. Additionally, Beetlejuice 2 presents a star-crossed lover situation, with Beetlejuice and Lydia’s relationship being impossible as one is alive and one is dead.

Like other rom-com leads, Keaton’s character faces obstacles that further complicate his union with Lydia. Delores, the crazy ex-girlfriend, threatens to sabotage his endeavors to prove his love by all means necessary — in this case, saving Lydia’s daughter. On top of that, Betelgeuse must get Rory, Lydia’s manipulative new boyfriend, out of the way. Funnily enough, all of this is something that Grant’s Charles also faces, with him and Carrie being separated by her going to the U.S., her eventual marriage to another man, and his ex-girlfriend playing a key role when the pair gets one last chance.

What’s more, even if Burton has other films that willingly admit a romantic focus, Beetlejuice 2 is, of his repertoire, the closest to a romantic comedy. Perhaps how similar Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is to Four Weddings and a Funeral was a coincidence, but Betelgeuse’s quest undoubtedly follows the rom-com formula.