The Tim Burton movie featuring the mischievous, striped-suit ghost is Beetlejuice. Released in 1988, the gothic comedy follows Adam and Barbara Maitland, a recently deceased couple who remain trapped in their country house and try to scare away its new human occupants.
The title character, Betelgeuse—usually written “Beetlejuice” in the film’s title—is a self-serving “bio-exorcist” whom the Maitlands contact for help. Michael Keaton played him as a fast-talking, grotesque trickster whose black-and-white striped suit became his defining visual trademark.
The film was directed by Burton from a screenplay by Michael McDowell and Warren Skaaren, with a story by McDowell and Larry Wilson. It also starred Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Catherine O’Hara and Winona Ryder. Danny Elfman composed the score, while Harry Belafonte’s songs became closely associated with the film’s most memorable supernatural scenes.
A common mix-up is the spelling: the character’s name is connected to “Betelgeuse,” the star, but the movie title is officially “Beetlejuice.” The original film later inspired an animated series, a stage musical and the 2024 sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.