Believe it or not, even an ancient wild man like Beetlejuice has parents. On top of that, audiences have even seen them before, though not in one of Tim Burton’s big-screen epics. The elder ‘Juices were seen in an episode of the strange but lovable “Beetlejuice: The Animated Series.”

During the episode, Lydia Deetz (Alyson Court) wonders aloud what Beetlejuice’s (Stephen Ouimette) parents look like. Beej immediately whisks Lydia to the other side, where they meet Nat Juice (Len Carlson) and Bea Juice (Susan Roman). But while Beej is a wild party man with no adherence to propriety or the laws of gravity, his parents are entirely different ghouls, which causes an interfamily conflict. His mom’s very invested in keeping a neat home – the exact opposite of her worm-and-beetle-coated son. His dad, meanwhile, can’t do anything but work and work hard. Since Beetlejuice’s job basically boils down to hanging around with Lydia, thus making him and his pop total opposites. A family conflict sets in, and only Lydia can help out.

How does Beetlejuice manage to settle the lingering differences he has with his folks? It’s all thanks to the interference of Lydia, who helps him realize that even though they’re different people, his family still loves him. It’s a bond that ends up lasting; Beetlejuice’s parents end up guest-starring in a number of episodes after that, and we even meet Beej’s brother.

In the movie timeline, audiences haven’t met Beetlejuice’s (Michael Keaton) parents, though “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” gives us a good look at his life as a living man. A preview clip shows him robbing graves in a plague-laden Italy before entering into an unholy union with Delores (Monica Bellucci), who becomes his wife — and poisons him for her death cult. Beetlejuice responds by hacking her into pieces. Since she seems to hold the key to his death, one senses they won’t be having a happy reunion of their own anytime soon.