25 reasons why we still love Beetlejuice
By G.G. Andrew
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4. Those Football Players
It’s hard to make a movie about death, whether comedy or not, without alluding to the rampant denial of death. At the beginning of the movie, the Maitlands are unsure and confused by what’s happened to them, but they eventually accept the reality of their demise. But the football players that Adam and Barbara see when they visit their case worker Juno are deep in denial—and maybe being thick in the head doesn’t help.
“Coach, where’s the men’s room?” a player in full gear asks Juno.
“I’m not your coach. He survived,” Juno drily responds.
These footballs players, while hilarious, always make me wonder. How did they die? They say it was a “crash,” but does that mean car accident? If so, why were they still suited up with their helmets on? Was it instead a really bad tackle? If so, did their team still win the game?
Finally, like the Maitlands before them, the players realize that maybe they’re no longer among the living.
“Coach…I don’t think we survived that crash,” one says to Juno.
“How did you guess?” she deadpans.
Lucky for us, the football players appear briefly at the end of the movie as well dancing with Lydia—a weird choice, but one that I’m personally okay with.