Alec Baldwin thought ‘Beetlejuice’ would ruin his career.
The 61-year-old actor had "no idea" what Tim Burton’s cult 1988 comedy-horror "was about" and feared that the film would be so poorly received that he would struggle to be cast in new parts afterwards.
Speaking to GQ’s YouTube channel, he said: "When we did ‘Beetlejuice’ I had no idea what it was about. I thought my, all of our, careers are going to end with the release of this film. Maybe we’re all going to be dead."
The film follows Alec’s Adam Maitland and his wife Barbara (Geena Davis) who die in a car accident and find themselves haunting their country residence, unable to leave the house.
When Charles and Delia Deetz (Catherine O’Hara and Jeffrey Jones) move in with their daughter Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) the Maitlands attempt to scare them away without success and their efforts attract a spirit called Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton), whose help quickly becomes dangerous for everyone involved.
Baldwin explained that although he was dubious about the role, it was Keaton as the titular character that convinced him of the movie’s potential success.
He said: "Michael came and knew the secret. Because I would act and then I would have some doubts. I was much more neurotic about what I would do, and I was very young starting out in films. And Keaton just came out and he was like the comedy Annie Oakley. He was so self-assured. He just tore it up."
The ’30 Rock’ star went on to compare Burton to a "crazy professor" but hailed his directing technique.
He said: "Tim was looking down at a piece of paper and maybe this is the only direction Tim gave me the whole entire movie. He would look up and go, ‘No. Don’t do that.’ And then go back to the paper and draw.
"When you’re around Tim, he was just such a crazy professor. That’s one of the earliest movies I made, and you see everything that’s brought to bear in making movies in a movie like that."
Alec Baldwin thought Beetlejuice would kill his career
