Actor’s Spotlight: Michael Keaton

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Michael John Douglas, popularly known as Michael Keaton, was born on September 5, 1951, in Kennedy Township, Pennsylvania. He is the youngest of seven children. His father, George A. Douglas, worked as a civil engineer and surveyor, and his mother, Leona Elizabeth, was a homemaker. Keaton attended Montour High School in Robinson Township, Pennsylvania, and studied speech for two years at Kent State University.

Keaton first appeared on TV on the Pittsburgh public television programs Where the Heart Is and Mister Rogers Neighborhood (1975). In 1989, Keaton was cast by Tim Burton as the comic book superhero, Batman. He later starred in the sequel to Batman entitled, Batman Returns in 1992 which was as successful as the first one. He was set to star in the third Batman film but left the franchise after Tim Burton was no longer the director.

In 2006, Keaton voiced Chick Hicks in the Pixar movie, Cars. He also provided the voice of Ken in Toy Story 3 in 2010. In 2014, he starred in the film Birdman, and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy for his portrayal of Thomson. In 2017, Keaton played the supervillain The Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming. In 2019, he played the villain in Disney’s live-action adaptation of Dumbo, which was directed by Tim Burton.

In 2021, Keaton appeared on The Protégé as Michael Rembrandt alongside Maggie Q and Samuel L. Jackson. Keaton’s agency, ICM Partners, has confirmed that he will appear as Batman in the DC Extended Universe’s upcoming superhero film, The Flash, which will be released in June 2022.