By Jack Peat

The long-awaited follow-up to Tim Burton’s 1988 class is ‘finally a go’

Jenna Ortega has been tipped to star in the eagerly anticipated follow-up to Tim Burton’s 1988 classic, Beetlejuice. The Wednesday star is reportedly being considered to play the daughter of Winona Ryder’s Lydia Deetz in the film. Film Reporter Jeff Sneider first leaked the news, which was subsequently backed up by sources from The Hollywood Reporter. Sneider reckons the long-awaited follow-up to Tim Burton’s 1988 classic movie is ‘finally a go’ and says Burton will reunite the film’s original cast members for what promises to be a blockbuster movie. Among them, Ryder will star as the original goth girl, Lydia, Michael Keaton will be cast as bio-exorcist Betelgeuse and Catherine O’Hara will play Lydia’s step-mother Delia Deetz. Ortega will also join the cast, with financial support for the film being offered up by none other than Brad Pitt’s production house Plan B. The Wednesday star is currently Hollywood’s favourite goth girl and the famed director is already well acquainted with her work thanks to the smash Netflix series. The 20-year-old actor has also starred in You, Jane the Virgin, Scream and Scream VI. When Burton was asked by Deadline about the chance for a Beetlejuice 2, the director said “nothing is out of the question”. “I only know if I’m making a film when I’m actually on the set shooting,” Burton said of the sequel to his 1988 cult classic that also starred Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis. “I try to go back to the root of everything. It springs from a seed and then it grows, rather than out of these statements. “I am working on ideas and things but it’s all very early days. We’ll set how it goes. How’s that for a non-answer?” Ryder recently confirmed to USA today back in May that she’ll hopefully be reprising her iconic role. The Stranger Things actor said: “I’m definitely excited and I’m really hopeful that it’ll happen. “The only way we would do it is if everything was perfect and we had all the people – obviously Michael [Keaton] and obviously Tim [Burton].”