Screen-used movie props can command big money on the auction circuit, with collectors of Star Wars, Star Trek, The Lord of the Rings, and other films paying a premium for Frodo couture or tufts of Wookiee hair. But some fans apparently prefer to cut out the middleman and just swipe the stuff during filming.
According to the Vermont State Police and news outlet Caledonian Record, a thief (or thieves) has made off with a giant sculpture intended for use in a Beetlejuice sequel currently shooting in the state. The abstract piece, said to weigh 150 pounds, disappeared sometime between late Thursday, July 13, and early Friday, July 14 from a cemetery located in East Corinth, one of the locations being used for the film.
Another prop disappeared around the same time—a lamppost with a pumpkin-shaped top was removed and placed into a GMC truck. Police are soliciting tips on social media.
As The A.V Club reports, the sculpture was seen in 1988’s Beetlejuice, which starred Michael Keaton as a derelict ghost who agrees to help a (dead) couple evict the living tenants from their home. Keaton is returning to reprise his role, along with co-stars Catherine O’Hara and Winona Ryder.
Film productions have long had to deal with props disappearing from sets. In 2001, four Spider-Man costumes valued at $50,000 each were stolen from the set of the Sam Raimi film. (They were later recovered.) In 2022, some very ambitious criminals pilfered more than 350 prop antiques worth $250,000 from the set of The Crown.
The Beetlejuice follow-up does not yet have a release date.
This article was originally published on www.mentalfloss.com as Somebody Keeps Stealing Props From the Set of the 'Beetlejuice' Sequel.
