Bitelchus BitelchusThe sequel to Tim Burton’s classic 1988 film, has hit theaters with much force, but not without controversy. Burton’s macabre comedy, which opened the famous Venice Film Festival a few days ago, has returned to public opinion due to the notable absence of Jeffrey Jones, the actor who played the character of Charles Deetz in the original film.
Among the actors present in the original film more than three decades ago, Michael Keaton and his interpretation of Bitelchús himself could not of course be missing. Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara are other examples of actresses who have returned to play their initial characters in this second installment. However, the absence of Jeffrey Jones, the actor who played businessman Charles Deetz in the original fiction, has not gone unnoticed by the public.
The main reason for Jones’ absence from this sequel is that in 2002, he was arrested for possession of child pornography and soliciting sexual images from a 14-year-old boy. Jones was convicted in 2003 of enticing a minor to pose for sexual photographs and sentenced to five years of probation, counseling, and permanent registration as a sex offender. Years later, and without having updated his sex offender status, he would plead guilty himself and be sentenced to another three years of probation. The actor was registered and declared a sex offender in the United States, a label that permanently distanced him from acting and thus from his presence in this recent sequel.
Despite this conviction, Jeffrey Jones did not disappear from the public sphere suddenly, but kept some roles years later, like in 2019, the year he participated in the film Dead woodone of his last appearances before virtually disappearing from the film industry. No member of the film’s production has commented on Jones’ absence.
Tim Burton and his screenwriters They managed to skillfully eliminate the presence of the character that Jones embodied in the fiction in a clever way, consistent with the plot and development. His character appears, but as a ghost with half of his body missing, so his face is never seen. In fact, it is the death of his character that triggers the plot of this sequel.
Despite the notable absence of Jeffrey Jones, he is not the only actor who has not been renewed since the first opus. Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin also did not return to play their original characters, respectively Barbara and Adam.
Newcomers such as Monica Bellucci or Jenna Ortega, one of the most recognized actresses of the moment and protagonist of one of Burton’s latest works, Wednesdaycloses the casting of the film, which the controversy has not affected at the box office. It debuted at number 1 in Spain and the United States, where it achieved the second best figure for a premiere in history in the month of September with more than 100 million dollars in its first weekend.
