'I'll do it if it's interesting' - Tim Burton talks Beetlejuice 2

Tim Burton says a Beetlejuice sequel is in the works. Photo / AP

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetle... Oh, to hell with it, Beetlejuice!

I've been quietly hankering for a sequel to 1988 comedy horror Beetlejuice for years, and if Tim Burton's recent musings on a follow-up are anything to go by, a return of Michael Keaton as the devilishly frisky "bio-exorcist" could be on the cards.

Burton, who directed the original starring Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis and Winona Ryder, was recently asked about his involvement with the long-mooted sequel while promoting new flick, Dark Shadows.

"Seth [Grahame-Smith] is writing something," Burton told Collider.com.

"I just told him, because it was something where I liked the character, he'd probably have a better response. He has ideas about it, so I just wanted to let him respond to it and see what he comes up with."

Asked if he'd be interested in taking on the project, he added: "[I'll do it] if it was interesting. Although, I don't know if I would ever know a good script if it bit me in the face. But, I know what I like, so we'll see."

The filmmaker also said he's "taking a break" before tackling his next project.

"I think I should [take a break] ... It's kind of embarrassing that I have three movies [this year]. I'm sick of me already," he said. "We'll let these come out, and then I'll go away and you guys can deal with other people."

Burton has three films coming out in 2012: Dark Shadows, starring Johnny Depp, Frankenweenie, and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, for which he served as executive producer.

Grahame-Smith recently revealed that a Beetlejuice sequel is a "high priority" for both Burton and Warner Bros.

"It's a reality in the sense that I met with Michael Keaton last week," he said. "We talked for a couple of hours and talked about big picture stuff. It's a priority for Warner Bros. It's a priority for Tim."

He said of Keaton's interest in starring in a sequel: "Huge, he's been wanting to do it for 20 years and he'll talk to anybody about it who will listen. I really told him, I have a huge reverence for Tim and a huge reverence for that film in general.

"I don't think we should do it if we s**t on the legacy. He agrees. So, right now, it remains to be seen, I have a couple of story ideas, but we're very early out."

Grahame-Smith also gave an update in March, stressing that the movie would be an all-out sequel and not a reboot.

"I have a rough idea of what it's gonna be," he told Collider. "However - I should stress this - it's not a remake, it's not a reboot, it is a true sequel with Michael Keaton as the title character Beetlejuice.

"I don't wanna be the guy that destroys the legacy and the memory of the first film; I would rather die. I would rather just not make it, I'd rather just throw the whole thing away than make something that pays no respect and doesn't live up even close to the legacy of the first film."

On whether any of the original cast members will return, he added: "It's all possible. In terms of the story, however many years that are between the two films will be the amount of years that are between the two story lines."

Watch the trailer for Burton's Beetlejuice below:

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