Wondering whether Tim Burton’s latest horror comedy is suitable for your kids? Find out everything you need to know before you head to the cinema. Warning: we don’t recommend reading this article out loud in case you accidentally summon Betelgeuse…
What is the age rating for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice?
We rated Beetlejuice Beetlejuice 12A for moderate horror, gore, violence, sex, drug references, language. This means the film is suitable for children aged 12 and up, although young children may see the film at the cinema if they are accompanied by an adult. Below is our content advice on the film, or you can check out our handy visual guide to the age rating and its key content themes here.
violence
A monstrous infant attacks a doctor, with resulting bloody detail. It is implied that a man dismembers his wife with an axe after she tries to poison him. In an animated sequence, blood spatters the screen after a person is attacked by a shark. As part of a wedding ceremony, the couple bite the heads off chickens.
threat and horror
In a dream sequence, a woman gives birth to a baby fiend, which goes on the rampage. People are chased by a monstrous fanged worm. A group of influencers are sucked into their own devices.
language
There is infrequent strong language ('f**k'), as well as other terms such as 'crap', 'asshole', 'piss', 'shit', 'hell', 'damn', 'Jesus' and 'God'.
sex
There is a moderate comic sex scene, without nudity or strong detail.
drugs
It is suggested that a woman misuses prescription pills.
injury detail
Multiple ghosts in the afterlife are seen to have died in nasty ways such as being bitten in half, impaled by a javelin and melted by hazardous material. In fantasy sequences, a demon pulls out his own beating heart and causes his fantastical innards to spill out. A dismembered ghost staples herself back together.
sexual violence and sexual threat
A theme of the film is a demon's intention to marry a woman against her will. He fleetingly threatens to exploit photos of someone doing 'unseemly things'. A person is revealed to take advantage of vulnerable women for their money.
dangerous behaviour
The ghost of a janitor drinks bleach.
flashing/flickering lights
This film contains flickering or flashing lights that may affect those with photosensitive epilepsy.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice at a glance
Tim Burton returns with a sequel to his 1988 anarchic comedy horror, Beetlejuice, reteaming with Michael Keaton as the mischievous demon Betelgeuse who tries once again to win the affections of Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) while evading a vengeful figure from his past. Still haunted by her previous encounter with Betelgeuse, Lydia must reluctantly join forces with him to save her daughter, Astrid (Wednesday’s Jenna Ortega), from supernatural forces in this frightening, gruesome and outrageous adventure set somewhere between this life and the next.
What can I expect from Beetlejuice Beetlejuice?
The original Beetlejuice was rated 15 in 1988, a year before the 12 rating was introduced and first awarded to Burton’s Batman. When Beetlejuice was resubmitted for a 30th anniversary cinema re-release in 2018, the 15 rating was no longer in line with our standards at the time so we reclassified it 12A for moderate horror, sex and suicide references, infrequent strong language.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice features similar classification issues, recapturing the first film’s ghoulishly fun visuals and madcap humour. This is particularly evident during scenes set in a ‘waiting room’ in the afterlife, in which souls appear in the same state as their moment of death: we see a person’s face melting from a hazardous material, the dismembered bodies of shark attack victims, and other darkly comic demises. Our Classification Guidelines allow for occasional blood and injury at 12A/12, as well infrequent gory moments if justified by context. Here, the fantastical setting, stylisation and humour frame the morbid imagery and injuries, although some viewers may still find them disturbing and grotesque.
Our Classification Guidelines are informed by what people tell us, with findings from our most recent research consultation published earlier this year. One learning was that people see a clear difference between ‘threat’ and ‘horror’, with the latter typically featuring sustained suspense and terror, supernatural forces or creatures, gory or disturbing images, or regular ‘jump scares’ and frightening moments. Our guidelines at 12A/12 allow for horror moments, although they should not be frequent or sustained.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice features various supernatural scares, fantastical creatures and grisly details presented in a gleefully comic manner. More horrific moments are infrequent and relatively brief, with perhaps the most nightmarish moment involving a woman giving birth to a demonic baby that viciously mauls the doctors, resulting in some bloody injuries. The scene may prove distressing for some viewers, but it is fantastical in nature, over quickly, and is important in showing the fears of a central character.
Fans of Burton’s morbid sense of humour are likely to enjoy the antics of Betelgeuse himself. His offer to ‘spill his guts’ in therapy is gruesomely literal, and his behaviour is often coarse and crude, particularly when it comes to women. Again, the comic tone and absence of graphic detail mean these scenes are appropriately placed at 12A, but language and sex references are among the key classification issues.
You can read more about how we classify threat & horror, violence, language, sex and more in our BBFC Guides.
