Over the past few decades, several actors have taken on the role of DC’s favorite superhero Batman, including Ben Affleck, Christian Bale and Robert Pattinson, but in 1989, superhero movies were just getting started. With Tim Burton at the helm, the director explained why he chose Michael Keaton as his Bruce Wayne Batman.
Before Beetlejuice BeetlejuiceAt the premiere on September 6, Tim Burton also looked back at the choice of an actor to play the famous DC superhero. Burton and Keaton had already worked together in 1988 on “The Last Man”. Beetlejuice and reunited for the superhero film, but that wasn’t the reason Burton chose the actor. He told GQ that Keaton’s “certain energy” was the reason Burton thought he would be a great Bruce Wayne and Batman.
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“I love Michael because he has a certain energy,“, explained Burton. “That’s why I wanted him to be in Batman, because you just look into his eyes and he’s intelligent, scary, crazy – all at once..” All perfect qualities for the brooding superhero.
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Casting Wayne as Batman might have worked in Burton’s mind, but his choice proved controversial, with 50,000 people writing to Warner Bros to protest the casting. Keaton, on the other hand, credits Burton with “everything.” He explained that his 1988 drama Clean and sober The director knew Keaton was the right choice, and his version of the character is still considered one of the best portrayals.
“Tim deserves enormous recognition. He changed everything“, Keaton said. “I can’t say for sure, but there’s a strong possibility that without Tim Burton there would be no Marvel universe, no DC universe. He’s been doubted and questioned.”
Keaton continued, “He didn’t get enough credit for saying, ‘Yeah, that guy.’ And everyone said, ‘Wait, Michael? You worked with him on Beetlejuiceright?’ But I think what happened was Tim saw Clean and Sober. I get the recognition. I don’t know if he got enough credit for that step. It was a brave step.” Keaton reprised his role in the 1992 sequel Batman Returnsin the unpublished Batgirl Movie and 2023 The Flash with a cameo.
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Tim Burton and Michael Keaton reunite for the sequel to Beetlejuice
Although there have been talks of Keaton donning the Batman suit again, the future of his Bruce Wayne is still uncertain. However, he has reunited with Burton for another fan-favorite role: Beetlejuice. Over three decades after its premiere in 1988, Keaton’s Ghost with the Most returns to the big screen. Catherine O’Hara and Winona Ryder will also reprise their roles as Delia and Lydia Deetz.
Although he played the title character, the ghoul had a total of 17 minutes of screen time and Keaton wants to preserve the spirit of the original. “The idea was, no, no, no, you can’t charge it with Beetlejuice, that will kill it”, explained Keaton. “In my opinion, the character of Beetlejuice no longer drives the story as much as he did in the first part. It’s more of a part of the plot here than in the first film, where it was more about this thing coming in and driving the film forward a little bit.” He also stressed that the film captures the “handmade spirit” of the original, as they focused on keeping it free of CGI.
Keaton didn’t have a hard time returning to the role, Tim Burton told the same outlet. “It was like a strange family reunion. Very strange, but the strange thing is, Michael put so much effort into it again that it was kind of scary. I mean, for someone who maybe didn’t really want to do that, he seemed to channel it very quickly. And so it was quite exciting and surreal.”
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will be in theaters on September 6th.
Source: GQ
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
- director
- Tim Burton
- Release date
- 6 September 2024
- Pour
- Jenna Ortega, Catherine O’Hara, Willem Dafoe, Monica Bellucci, Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton
- Main genre
- comedy
