With his recent project Wednesday on Netflix enthralling goths and general audiences alike, director Tim Burton has had one of the most colorful and creepy careers in entertainment. He also has a cast of regulars that continuously work with the Gothic iconic director and genuinely love doing so. Burton is known for wonderfully macabre films like The Nightmare Before Christmas, Beetlejuice, Corpse Bride, and Edward Scissorhands, but he's also known for the actors that frequently star in his blockbusters.
While Burton has frequent collaborators across the board, such as composer Danny Elfman, here are just a few of the actors who love working with Burton and what they've said about him.
8 Johnny Depp
One of the most famous duos in all of Hollywood, you can't mention either Johnny Depp or Tim Burton without the other. Having made eight films together, starting with the 1990 fantasy Edward Scissorhands, the pair have represented outcasts for years in film. Some of Burton's best films have starred Depp, and their friendship goes beyond the screen as they bond as eccentrics. Depp's even the godfather to Burton and his wife, Helena Bonham Carter's, son Billy Ray. The last film they worked on together was back in 2012, but here's to hoping their partnership continues. Depp has even gone on to state in an Esquire article from 2007, "My life is my life because of Tim. Definitely", often calling Burton an artistic visionary.
7 Helena Bonham Carter
Besides Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter comes in second in terms of collaboration with the famous director, but she’s number one in terms of a personal relationship with the director, as she married Burton and had two kids with him. While they are now divorced, Bonham Carter still has plenty of wonderful things to say about her ex-husband.
Their professional and romantic relationship started to bloom with Burton's 2001 science fiction flick Planet of the Apes when she starred as a caring primate. She's gone on to star in much of his work, often alongside Depp, truly understanding the mind behind what is often perceived of Burton, stating "People are always going on about how 'dark' Tim is, but I always think, at the root of him, is this big child." While their marriage didn't last, she jokingly comments on their working relationship, "It might be easier to work together without being together anymore. He always only cast me with great embarrassment."
6 Michael Keaton
Having worked with Burton a record number of six times, Keaton has brought to life some of the most memorable characters in cinematic history. Their partnership began when he transformed himself into Beetlejuice in 1988, and then he turned towards a more serious role as Bruce Wayne/Batman in Batman and Batman Begins. He's appeared in smaller roles over the years, but he's delighted viewers with some of the best characters Burton has put to screen. Keaton had a similar appreciation of Burton's artistry as other frequent collaborators, claiming that even if films like Batman may flop that "I love Tim and he's such an artist."
5 Danny DeVito
While often playing side characters, Danny DeVito has popped up in numerous Burton outings. He most famously portrayed the villainous Penguin in Batman Returns and returned to work with Burton in films like the cult hit Mars Attacks!, Big Fish, and the Disney live-action remake of Dumbo. No matter what role DeVito is put in, he always shines and makes the audience take notice even alongside all the other frequent acting collaborators in Burton's filmography. There's a reason that even when many years pass between their collaborations, DeVito continues choosing to work with Burton. DeVito enjoys receiving calls about new projects from Burton and likes to be one of the many tools in Burton's toolkit.
4 Eva Green
She hasn't starred in as many films as the previous entries, but Eva Green has been one of the more recent additions to Burton's frequent collaborator list. She landed a role in the movie Dark Shadows alongside mainstay Johnny Depp and then went on to portray Miss Peregrine in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children in 2016 and a trapeze artist in the 2019 live-action Dumbo. It seems she's another kindred spirit to Burton's sensibilities and fans have even speculated a relationship off-screen between the pair. However, Green quickly shut down rumors with an Instagram post - "Tim Burton and I are not together, unlike what the rumors say. I am very lucky to have worked with him. If I inspire him, he never told me."
3 Christopher Lee
Sadly Sir Christopher Lee passed away in 2015, but he was another one of Burton's favored performers who starred in a plethora of his work - often small roles, but mighty ones. Their collaboration started in 1999 with Sleepy Hollow and what started with one film ended in five collaborations on screen together. One of his most iconic performances was as a coldhearted dentist and father to Willy Wonka. Before Lee's death, he went on to proclaim Burton as "one of the great directors of our age."
2 Alan Rickman
Another actor who sadly passed away and was a great admirer of Burton, Alan Rickman. He may have only appeared in two of Burton's films, but he returned in a sequel by another director with the Alice in Wonderland franchise and would've done more work with Burton if given more time and opportunity. He starred as the main antagonist Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (even singing a duet with Johnny Depp) and as the Caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland.
He found Burton to be something of an artistic genius, saying "I mean, Tim Burton has a mind like a fairground. I aim to do everything he ever does. I am a crawling sycophant to him!" These words are an indication of how famous actors like Rickman have fallen in love with Burton's style and are always ready to work with him if given the chance or a call.
1 Catherine O'Hara
This leading lady has lent herself physically and vocally to Burton's catalog over the years. Catherine O'Hara has starred as Delia Deetz in Beetlejuice and vocally as characters Sally and Shock in The Nightmare Before Christmas and multiple roles in the animation Frankenweenie. While she rarely sees much of Burton nowadays, she still has a fondness for him and the impact he's had on her life, “I would love to work with him, on film, in one of his films, it hasn't happened yet but I was really happy to be called about this," she told interviewer Simon Reynolds when promoting Frankenweenie. There are rumors however of her return as Delia Deetz for a Beetlejuice sequel!
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTErZ%2Bippeoe6S7zGiroZ2jmnqivsRmq6KlXZfCs8DOp6pmnqKavraxza1knKecoa6ju9Gaq6iqo2Q%3D