Tim Burton Almost Had A Grim And Gruesome Cameo In The Nightmare Before Christmas

Whether you think "The Nightmare Before Christmas" is a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie, it's a joy. The story of Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, is regular holiday viewing for fans, including myself, and the stop-motion animation is incredible. It gives it a creepier quality than regular animation would have. The lighting on the deep wells of Jack's eyes or the way it looks like you could actually wear the fancy dead rat hat yourself just makes you shudder in the best way. Look, I'm not saying this is a scary movie. It's just adorably disturbing as well as wildly entertaining. 

Producer Tim Burton (no, he didn't direct the film — Henry Selick did), who came up with the idea for "The Nightmare Before Christmas," almost had one of those adorably disturbing (and pretty gruesome) moments in the film as a cameo, though Selick didn't keep it in, according to the 2023 book "Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas Visual Companion" by David A. Bossert. In fact, the scene had to be reshot because there was concern about Burton's reaction to the cameo. 

The cameo happens when Jack comes back to Halloween Town after Christmas is saved. The vampire trio (Kerry Katz, Randy Crenshaw, and Sherwood Ball) are playing ice hockey with a pumpkin while it snows. As it turns out, that wasn't supposed to be a pumpkin at all. In fact, it was supposed to be Tim Burton's head, which gets hit by a hockey stick and shot right into the camera. The way that the stop-motion figures are lit means that the Burton head puck would have been a bit grisly.

In the book, Henry Selick says he was concerned about showing this scene to Burton. Selick revealed:

"I said, 'I don't know. Tim [Burton] might [be] upset.' So, that's one of the reshoots ... And I never knew if [it did]. I wish I could've gotten him on the phone and asked, 'Tim, is this a funny thing, or are You going to be pissed?' I wish I could've done that because it would've been nice to know either way."

Selick also mentioned the scene in a 2018 interview with The Hollywood Reporter. He said, "I really regret replacing it," and called it "very funny." He added, "I'd love to replace the one in there and I'm sure Tim would love it." As it turns out, Burton knew about the cameo the whole time. In the "Visual Companion" book, he said, "I wasn't offended, because I understand animators' aggression and pent-up anger." Frankly, it doesn't seem like an insult or a result of animator anger at all. It's precisely the sort of thing you expect in animation, and it sounds like a tribute to me. 

"The Nightmare Before Christmas" is currently streaming on Disney+ along with a sing-a-long version.