WARNING! This article contains major SPOILERS for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice!While Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis led the cast of the original Beetlejuice as the recently deceased couple Adam and Barbara Maitland, their ghosts are nowhere to be found in Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice ended with the Maitlands and Deetzes living together harmoniously in their Winter River house.

Beetlejuice revealed the Maitlands were sentenced to spend the next 125 years in their home, but they’re conveniently missing from Beetlejuice 2. Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis’ absences makes sense, given it would be difficult to explain why the two ghosts aged from being about 30 years old to being in their mid-60s after death. Still, that left Beetlejuice 2’s returning characters with the task of explaining why and how Barbara and Adam were able to leave the attic and avoid the 125-year haunting rule – and where they went instead.

Adam & Barbara Found A Loophole & "Moved On" In Beetlejuice 2

Adam & Barbara's Souls Have Moved On From The Winter River House

According to Lydia in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Adam and Barbara found a loophole in the clause that states they must stay in their Winter River home for 125 years. By finding this loophole, Lydia reveals that Adam and Barbara were able to “move on.” Upon learning this news, Jenna Ortega’s teenage Astrid Deetz notes “how convenient” it is that they’re no longer haunting the attic, so Lydia can’t prove her ghost-seeing ability. This line is also a tongue-in-cheek nod to Beetlejuice 2’s “loophole” explanation being a convenient way to avoid physically bringing back Adam and Barbara in the sequel.

Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) with his arms around a worried Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland (Geena Davis) in Beetlejuice.

I Can't Believe I Completely Missed Beetlejuice’s Most Ironic Adam & Barbara Death Detail For 20 Years (& I Love It Now)

After already having seen Beetlejuice on countless occasions, I finally noticed a subtle detail that makes Adam and Barbara's deaths very ironic.

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However, it's not clear whether the loophole means they “moved on” by going to the Great Beyond in the afterlife and letting their souls leave both Earth and the Neitherworld for good. Alternatively, the Maitlands may have “moved on” by finding the ability to leave their house and wander Earth without being sent directly to Beetlejuice's sandworm-infested moon of Saturn. It seems most likely that Adam and Barbara decided they were sick of being stuck in the Winter River attic and decided to on to the Great Beyond, perhaps even taking Beetlejuice 2’s Soul Train to get there.

It's unclear whether both Delia and Charles Deetz will now take over haunting the Winter River house after their deaths in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

Beetlejuice 2 Still Subtly Brings Back Adam & Barbara Maitland

The Two Ghosts Left A Piece Of Them Behind

Astrid Deetz discovering the model covered with a sheet in Beetlejuice 2 — Image via Universal Pictures

Though Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis don’t reprise their roles in Beetlejuice 2, the original ghost characters still have a subtle physical presence in the sequel. In an early Beetlejuice 2 sequence, small figurines of Adam and Barbara can be seen in the town model, with their bodies reaching upward from the river they died in near their crashed yellow car. The town model was deeply tied to Adam and Barbara’s arc in the original movie, so the Deetz family keeping their figurines there is a great way to honor their presence and enduring impact in Beetlejuice 2.