Adam and Barbara Maitland's absence in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is one of the major questions in the minds of fans before seeing the sequel.
Beetlejuice 2 brings back important characters from the first movie, namely Michael Keaton's titular bio-exorcist, Winona Ryder's Lydia Deetz, and Catherine O'Hara's Delia Deetz.
However, a notable exclusion from Beetlejuice 2's star-studded lineup is Alec Baldwin's Adam and Geena Davis' Barbara Maitland, considering that they played major roles in the first movie.
Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis' Beetlejuice 1 Roles Explained
The first Beetlejuice movie mainly focuses on Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara (Geena Davis) as they try to adjust to the afterlife while also attempting to scare the Deetz family and lure them out of their house.
Adam and Barbara forge a strong bond with Lydia Deetz after realizing that she can see them despite being ghosts.
Although the Maitland couple is mainly responsible for bringing Beetlejuice into the fray, they eventually redeem themselves after saving Lydia from being eternally married to the titular bio-exorcist.
Barbara also makes a last-ditch effort to ultimately defeat Beetlejuice by summoning a sandworm that devoured the villain.
The movie ends with the Maitlands acting as surrogate parents to Lydia, implying that they are at peace with the idea that they need to stay in the land of the living for 125 years before moving on.
Beetlejuice 2 Finally Reveals What Happened to Maitlands
Warning - this section contains spoilers for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.
In Beetlejuice 2, the Maitlands' absence is finally explained by a key line mentioned by Lydia Deetz to her daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega), during a pivotal moment in the movie.
After Astrid asks if her mother can ask for help from the ghosts that live in the Winter River house to defeat Beetlejuice again, Lydia says. "They found a loophole and they moved on."
Lydia is not able to elaborate on what kind of loophole the Maitlands were able to find, but she seems at peace and happy that her surrogate parents managed to move forward.
In an interview with People, Geena Davis admitted that there is an issue behind bringing her Beetlejuice character back since "ghosts don't age:"
"I have a feeling that ghosts don't age. How would they explain that they're older?"
Davis' remark makes a ton of sense since it would be a glaring loophole if Adam and Barbara ended up returning as older versions of themselves.
Despite that, the sequel manages to give Adam and Barbara a peaceful exit through Lydia's key line that gives some sort of closure to the characters.
Moving forward beyond the afterlife has been the goal of the Maitlands ever since dying and it is quite fitting to know that they managed to achieve their goal.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is now playing in theaters worldwide.
