Tim Burton finally has his star in Hollywood: “Thanks buddy, you're the best!”

An honor for the filmmaker, surrounded by Monica Bellucci, Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton and Danny de Vito.

In the middle of a promotional marathon for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (which will be released in theaters on September 11), Tim Burton received a star on the Walk of Fame this week. An honor that clearly touched the 66-year-old American filmmaker, who became very popular with the public in the late 1980s thanks to his first Beetlejuicethen to Edward Scissorhandshis two Batman or even Ed Wood And Sleepy Hollow.

Tim Burton was surrounded by several actors from his new film for the occasion: his partner Monica Bellucci, as well as Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton and Danny de Vito, all of whom he has directed on several occasions.

Here is a best-of in photos and videos of this memorable day, accompanied by the translation of two powerful speeches given in his honor.

Beetlejuice: Did you say cult?

“Tim has a unique insight and understanding of the human heart, begins Winona Ryder to pay tribute to the director who revealed her to the general public thanks to Beetlejuicein 1988. He knows how to talk like no one else about those who are misunderstood, who are strange and bizarre. He doesn't just understand them, he celebrates them. Whether they are out of the ordinary, terrifying or hilarious, he offers them depth, humor, and a certain gallantry. He gives them dignity. His heroes are always these kinds of marginal characters, whom he adores.”

“We traveled all over the world to present Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and people kept asking me what it was like to work with Tim Burton, she continues. Describing our collaboration is actually quite difficult. Working with Tim is like being invited into his imagination, into his art. Personally, it is one of the most sacred things in my life. I will always be grateful to him for all this time spent in his universe.

On a personal level, Tim, your friendship has been a huge gift to me. When I met you, I was this weird kid, and you helped me find my voice, to be confident, to not conform. Your creative and inclusive spirit showed me what true artistic collaboration looked like. In other words, you made me understand that being a weird girl wasn’t just okay, that it was something to celebrate. That it was actually kind of cool. You carried that torch for all of us weird people. You helped us feel accepted everywhere, you showed us that we were valuable. For all of that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Tim Burton: “I was a normal moviegoer, therefore completely abnormal”

Michael Keaton then also took the floor, to discuss in detail their collaboration on Beetlejuice, but also his unwavering support when he chose him to play Batman.

“You see, with Tim when we start a project, we usually take the script, then (he puts it on the ground) we put it aside, telling ourselves that we're going to invent things instead! the actor immediately jokes. Sorry for the repetition, there are a couple of things I'm going to tell you here that I've already said. So: the first few times I met Tim, he was introduced to me as a talented young filmmaker, and our exchange was perfectly pleasant, but when I was asked how it went, I had to answer: 'He's a great guy… but I have no idea what he's talking about!' (laughs) These kinds of discussions happened several times, and he also showed me his drawings, which made me like him even more. I loved this guy, and I understood that he had a vision (about Beetlejuice)but I wasn't sure I understood it. Five films later, and after being around him for 30 years, I still have no idea what he's talking about! (laughs). No, seriously, I don't understand it, but I feel it. On every film, I feel it. Winona was talking earlier about the 'weirdos'well count me among you! I too feel perfectly at ease next to this guy. Working with him is simply bliss.”

“I remember very well my first day on the set of Beetlejuice, he then explains. I had a lot of ideas, I had worked on this character in my corner, and we hadn't yet done any rehearsals with Tim. I remember perfectly my apprehension, I said to myself: 'I hope what I'm going to propose will work.' And then Tim offered me a tour of the set. I first saw the shrunken heads, I said to myself: 'Oh. Okay.' All of these sets were so incredible. I felt completely at ease, and since then, that feeling has never changed. It's so nice to be surrounded by art like that, and to be part of such a universe. It's rare, and yet I felt it every time I worked with Tim again.

(Keaton then greets his Beetlejuice co-stars, before talking about the filmmaker again.)

Tim has such an open mind. And an absence of pretension. There are pretentious artists, but here, it's more that he thinks differently, that he proposes unusual things all the time. I'm sure it's the same for the surrealists or the cubists. In short, when he invites me into his world, I'm sensitive to all that.

I would like to talk a little about Batmannow. He had presented the script to me, it was after Beetlejuiceand he imposed me on the studio. He said: 'I want this guy as Batman.' The reactions were crazy. I'll never really understand them, actually. That casting was driving everyone crazy, the press… And Tim continued to support me. The fact that he insisted so much on my behalf is something very special, obviously. Plus, it inspired other people later on. There are a lot of people who are making superhero movies today, who are making big money from it, and who are influenced by Tim's choices, by his vision of what this kind of movie could look like. He changed everything. I've said it a hundred times, and it's true.

Who would have thought that this guy from Burbank and me, this little guy from a small town in Pennsylvania, would get together and create all this? Well, maybe we did (laughs). So to quote Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca : 'Tim, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.' Thanks buddy, you're the best.”

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