Lydia Deetz is the deuteragonist in the 1988 feature film Beetlejuice. She is Charles Deetz's daughter, the stepdaughter of Delia Deetz, and a friend of Adam and Barbara Maitland. She is also the mother of Astrid Deetz and the ex-wife of the late Richard.
She is portrayed by Winona Ryder.
Background[]
Lydia 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 needed some inspiration for her art business.
Personality[]
Lydia is a serious but kind girl who is sensitive beyond her Goth dress and feels isolated in the world. Her father and stepmother don’t 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. By the end of the film, she is more happy and well-adjusted because Adam and Barbara Maitland become active parental figures alongside Charles and Delia Deetz, who take a stronger role in her upbringing after having seen her nearly forced into marriage with Beetlejuice.
Physical Appearance[]
Lydia is shown with jet black hair which she often wears in a bushy ponytail with long parted bangs. She wears pale face makeup and peach eye shadow around her eyelids, under her eyebrows and above her cheekbones. She is also seen wearing all black constantly.
Appearances[]
Beetlejuice[]
Beetlejuice (TV series)[]
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice[]
As the movie opens Lydia is the host of her own TV show, "Ghost House with Lydia Deetz." She is sitting with the couple of a haunted house she went and investigated. As Lydia is speaking to the camera and audience, she sees Beetlejuice and is spooked. She is then escorted off the show and goes to the bathroom to take some unknown pills (possibly anxiety meds). Her manager (and later fiance) Rory comes into the bathroom to try and calm her down. He sees her taking the pills and throws them away. After she begs him he gives her one and takes one himself. She then gets multiple texts from her stepmother, Delia. She then flies to New York in which Delia tells her that her father is dead.
She sends multiple texts to her daughter, Astrid, as she is traveling to her boarding school to take her back to Winter River so they can plan the funeral. We see Lydia, Rory, and Delia in the car. Once Astrid comes down from her room she tries to grappled with the fact that her grandfather is dead. Showing little sympathy towards her mother she says that he was the only normal one in the family. Lydia explains to her that they need to go back to Winter River to which Astrid declines, saying that she is captain of the Environmentally Club and they are giving a speech next week. Lydia says that she had already cleared it with the principal of the school to which Astrid says that "when you donate an art center, the principal might as well be your puppet."
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In the Beetlejuice TV series, Lydia is the daughter of Delia Deetz, in the Beetlejuice film, she is Delia's step-daughter.
- In the first film, Lydia's mother is not mentioned, later in the sequel, Lydia mentions that her mother is alive.
- In the musicial, Lydia's mother, Emily Deetz is deceased.
- Lydia is very similar to Elsa Van Helsing, who is also played by Winona Ryder.
- Lydia and Elsa are both goth.
- Lydia's grade in Science is a C, but in Math is an A.
- Lydia also is similar to Edward Scissorhands.
- Lydia and Edward are both goth, polite, serious and mature.
- Lydia is Ryder's second reprise role after 36 years.
- Ryder previously reprised her role as Kim Boggs in Edward Scissorhands alongside Timothée Chalamet playing her son in a Super Bowl ad for Cadillac.
