With Fall approaching, people are getting into quite the spooky mood: setting up decorations, planning costumes and watching nostalgic Halloween movies such as the 1993 film “The Nightmare Before Christmas” or the 1990 film “Edward Scissorhands” by Tim Burton.
His creativity and gothic aesthetic had a significant cultural impact on millennials, but does his legacy still stand the test of time with Gen Z?
Tim Burton is an American filmmaker and artist known for his dark, gothic horror films like “Beetlejuice”, “Corpse Bride” and so on. His unique style coined the term “Burtonesque”, which has had an impact on American cinema with gothic culture. Most of his most famous films were made in the late 80s and early 90s, just in time for millenials to enjoy in their childhoods.
Tim Burton made a couple a films in the aughts such as “Alice in Wonderland” (2010) and “Corpse Bride”, along with still releasing films to this day such as the sequel to “Beetlejuice”, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice”, released in 2024, for Gen Z to enjoy in their time.
This revival of Tim Burton feeds into the resurrection of gothic culture interest amongst Gen Z, driven by social media and the global online community through celebrity influencers like Billie Eilish, through ideas of self-expression and more.
“Beyond music, the goth resurrection has been pushed onwards by the Tim Burton revival that has seen “Wednesday” conquer Netflix and “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” work its black magic at the box office (both starring Jenna Ortega, It-girl of 21st-century gothdom).” Says Ed Power, an Irish journalist on Independent. These help Tim Burton’s case with staying relevant with Gen Z.
There is also some controversy regarding certain decisions and statements made by Tim Burton.
There has been talk criticizing him for either not hiring enough black actors, casting them as villains or certain statements he made about “forced diversity”, leading to the notion that his rhetorical choices are racist.
Natasha Butler-Rahman, a contributing writer on The Register Forum, wrote “Burton’s only character voiced by a Black person is called ‘The Boogeyman,’ is the main antagonist of “The Nightmare Before Christmas”. This character is not only named after a derogatory term historically used against Black people, but also feeds on gumbo, which is presented as an unappealing monster’s food.”
While far from perfect, his work is very present with Gen Z through his revival in gothic culture and through the remediation of his gothic aesthetic in online spaces.
