Lydia Deetz is the daughter of Charles Deetz and the stepdaughter of Delia Deetz. She’s mostly referred to as a "goth" girl. Beetlejuice plans on marrying her, so he can return to the world of the living. She’s the main protagonist of the Beetlejuice movies and the deuteragonist of the animated series. It is revealed in the second film that Lydia's biological mother isn't dead, which is what people initially theorized happened to her mother for Delia to end up her stepmother. In fact, in the musical, the plot is primarily a modified version of the original film's story where Lydia's mother passes away.
Biography[]
History (Beetlejuice)[]
Lydia Deetz is from New York City and moved with her family to Winter River, Connecticut after her father decided to take a break from his real estate business and Delia needs a new inspiration for her art gallery. She defines herself as strange and unusual, and quickly sighted the Maitlands in the attic window on moving day. When the Maitlands tried to scare Delia and then were leaving her room, Lydia photographed them in the hall, then realizing they were the ghosts, and formally introduced themselves.
History (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice)[]
Lydia hosts the TV Show "Ghost House With Lydia Deetz". But, recent events following the unexpected death of her father has caused her, her mother Delia and her daughter Astrid to meet in the small town of Winter River in the house that her and her parents had called home.
Physical Description (Beetlejuice)[]
In the movie Lydia has medium-length black hair with pointed bangs and always has her hair in a half-ponytail. She is perpetually dressed in black. During the wedding scene, she’s seen wearing a poofy red, rose-themed dress and looks disgusted at the fact that she’s marrying Betelgeuse.
Personality (Beetlejuice)[]
Lydia is an irritable but friendly girl who is sensitive beyond her Goth dress and feels isolated in the world. Her father and stepmother do not take anything she says seriously and often ignore her for their own selfish pursuits. Lydia loves writing poetry, taking photographs, and loves anything pertaining to the supernatural and paranormal. Despite her young age, Lydia appears to be the most sensible member of the Deetz household. Though in her dark personality she has a great dark sense of humor to her. She also has a certain flair for the dramatic, particularly when talking about herself. By the end of the film, she is more happy and well-adjusted because Adam Maitland and Barbara Maitland become active parental figures alongside Charles Deetz and Delia Deetz, who take a stronger role in her upbringing after having seen her nearly forced into marriage with Betelgeuse.
Trivia (Beetlejuice)[]
- In an early script, Lydia was originally to be a minor character and a typical teenage angsty goth. She would've also had a 9-year-old sister named Cathy who would be the one to befriend the Maitlands. Most of Cathy's plot points and personality traits in the script were merged with Lydia.
- Only in the first script from the movie Lydia had a sister. The original script before it was changed was much darker. You can find the original movie script online.
- In early versions of the script it was set that Lydia would die in a fire and join the Maitlands in the afterlife. This was decided against after the realization that too many teens would be interpret this as "death being only way out of sadness" and might seem like a push for teens to commit suicide to find happiness instead of dealing with their problems.
- In early versions of the script it was set that Betelgeuse did not seek to marry Lydia in order to gain life among the living, but to rape her.
- A Monster High doll has been made of her in 2021.