At the end of Corpse Bride, Barkis is killed, Emily turns into butterflies, and Victor and Victoria are married, but how and why did that all happen? The 2005 stop-motion animated movie directed by Tim Burton and Mike Johnson and starring Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. Corpse Bride is inspired by an old Jewish folktale called "The Finger" where a man similarly accidentally commits his wedding vow to a dead finger sticking out of the ground, only the original story is quickly resolved by some quick legaleze regarding Jewish customs, whereas Corpse Bride has a few more twists and turns in its story.