WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)!While Otho isn’t in Beetlejuice 2, the character who essentially fills his place pays homage to the iconic figure with their tragic fate in the sequel’s final act. Alongside Juno, Jane Butterfield, and the Deetzes’ other dinner guests, Otho is among the biggest missing original characters in Beetlejuice 2, as actor Glenn Shadix sadly passed away in 2010. However, his role as the Deetzes’ most involved non-family member and paranormal-interested character isn’t forgotten, as Otho’s place is arguably filled by Justin Theroux’s Rory in Beetlejuice Beetleuice.
Of course, Otho and Rory are still very different, with the 1988 character being a colleague and friend of Delia who helps redesign and gut the Maitlands’ house while Rory is Lydia’s producer-turned-fiancé who is exploiting her gift and grief for personal profit. But, outside the Deetz family tree and Betelgeuse himself, Otho and Rory are the next-most important living supporting characters in their respective movies, with both also prioritizing their career prospects and appearances. Emphasizing their similar roles, Beetlejuice 2’s ending gives Rory the same hilarious fate as Otho from the 1988 Beetlejuice – but with an even darker twist.
Betelgeuse Gives Both Rory & Otho A Terrible Outfit Change In Their Final Beetlejuice Scenes
Betelgeuse Gives Otho A Leisure Suit & Rory A Bad T-Shirt
Anyone who gets in Betelegeuse’s way during the climaxes of Beetlejuice and Beetlejuice 2 is met with a chaotic use of his powers. In Beetlejuice’s original ending, Betelgeuse sent Barbara to the sandworm planet, sent Adam to the town model, sent Maxie and Sarah Dean flying through the house’s ceiling, and trapped Delia within her own sculptures. Otho’s fate is arguably the funniest way that Betelgeuse deals with the characters. His strategy to send Otho fleeing is to simply change his outfit to a blue leisure suit, betraying his style as he screams and tries to hide the costume.
Betelgeuse then recycles a few of his old tricks in Beetlejuice 2’s ending, which includes insulting Rory by giving him a terrible outfit change. However, rather than a blue leisure suit, Betelgeuse bestows upon Rory an unflattering T-shirt that reads “I Heart Delores” to replace his black wedding suit. While the T-shirt isn’t enough to send Rory running from the church, Betelgeuse gets rid of both Lydia’s fiancé and his own ex-wife, Delores, shortly after by summoning a sandworm to swallow them.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
(2024) doesn’t include any direct references to or mentions of Otho.
Rory’s Beetlejuice 2 Fate Is Far Darker Than Otho In Beetlejuice
Rory Gets A Far Worse Punishment From Betelgeuse
Betelgeuse may insult both Rory and Otho with terrible outfit changes, but he ultimately gives Rory a much harsher fate. Otho is never seen again after his outfit is changed and he runs away, so it’s presumed that he survived Beetlejuice’s ending but was scarred by his experiences. Meanwhile, Rory not only has the bad T-shirt change, but is also swallowed by the sandworm, which presumably either kills him, transports him to the sandworm planet, or takes him to the afterlife realm after Beetlejuice 2‘s “MacArthur Park” dance scene.
Otho was a close friend of the Deetzes who didn’t intend any malice against the Maitlands in the 1988 movie.
However, it shouldn’t be surprising that Rory received a much harsher ending in Beetlejuice 2. He was responsible for exploiting the Deetz family, lying to Lydia, and trying to force a marriage upon her in order to take advantage of her finances, and Betelgeuse wouldn’t forgive those slights against the self-professed love of his life. Meanwhile, Otho was a close friend of the Deetzes who didn’t intend any malice against the Maitlands in the 1988 movie, and he hardly posed a threat to Betelgeuse’s plans.
