After 50 years Michael Keaton dreams of returning to his roots. The Oscar-nominated actor was not born with the surname Keaton, but as Michael John Douglas.
In a recent interview, he explained how he chose his stage name after the Screen Actors Guild banned him from using the same name as the then-famous actor Michael Douglas or talk show host Mike Douglas.
“I was looking through… I don’t remember, I think it was a phone book. I had to think, I don’t know, let me think. Oh, that sounds reasonable!” Keaton recalled in an interview with People.
The “Batman” and “Beetlejuice” star explained that he plans to combine his two names and perform as Michael Keaton Douglas. He intended to implement this last year, when he was an actor and director of the film “Crimes of memory” (2023).
“I said, ‘Hey, I’m warning you, I’d like to be signed as Michael Keaton Douglas.’ And… I completely missed it. I forgot to let them know in advance enough for them to make the change. But they’re going to do it,” Keaton added.
In his latest production, the sequel to Tim Burton’s 1988 cult classic “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice”, the actor still appears as Michael Keaton.
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