Michael Keaton Credits Batmans Tim Burton with the Success of the Superhero Genre

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As a cinema enthusiast who has witnessed the evolution of superhero films over the past few decades, I can wholeheartedly agree with Michael Keaton‘s sentiments about Tim Burton. The 1989 Batman was indeed a game-changer that paved the way for today’s lucrative superhero genre. It’s fascinating to reflect on how the casting of Keaton as Bruce Wayne sparked such an uproar back then, but it ultimately paid off in spades.

In the realm of superhero movies, a transformative shift occurred, and it can be attributed primarily to the iconic character Batman (1989). Prior to gracing the screens once more in Beetlejuice’s much-anticipated sequel, the actor who brought the ghost with the most, Michael Keaton, joined co-star Winona Ryder in celebrating their director Tim Burton as he received his long-awaited star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In his speech during this occasion, the accomplished actor credited Burton for the triumph of today’s superhero films. As reported by Variety, Keaton made these remarks:

“I just want to finish here in a minute by talking about the whole Batman thing
[…] What that spawned:
There are a lot of people making a lot of money out there with their superhero movies because of his choice and his vision, because he changed everything.
I’ve said it a hundred times, but it’s true.
The man is a genre unto himself.”

35 years after working together on “Beetlejuice” (1988), Tim Burton requested that Michael Keaton reprise his role as both The Dark Knight and Bruce Wayne in “Batman Returns” (1992) and the upcoming “The Flash” (2023). During a speech, Keaton reminisced about this moment

“He hands me a script and says, ‘Please read this and tell me what you think.’
Now, this is after Beetlejuice.
After that performance, after that type of movie, and he says to the studio, ‘I want that guy.’
And I’ll never to this day understand this — why anyone even cared [that Keaton played Batman].
But the uproar… you would’ve thought we were being invaded. It was unbelievable.
The press went crazy.
But he stuck by me.
And the guts it took to stand by that decision will always be special to me, obviously.”

PC or Not, the Juice Is Loose Again

Following Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder’s tribute to Tim Burton on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the promotional tour for “Beetlejuice 2” carries on. During numerous interviews discussing the return of the infamous ghost character, Keaton has touched upon the contemporary sensitivity surrounding the film’s title character’s portrayal. In an interview with GQ, he commented:

In terms of his character development, there wasn’t much change needed as such. Beetlejuice, the mischievous rogue from 1988, still embodies that role in our modern times. He is more than just a male or female; he is essentially an entity or force. I’m not using ‘it’ for political correctness, but to accurately convey his unique nature.

To me, it felt more like a powerful presence, even an over-the-top masculine one, which I find appealing.

Audience members should truly cherish the experience when the long-awaited sequel to the 1988 iconic film hits cinemas this Friday. It’s been 36 years since Michael Keaton, Tim Burton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O’Hara were all together again, and the director has hinted that chances for a third installment are slim. Speaking about the possibility of a Beetlejuice 3, Burton mused, “If the same time frame continues, I’ll be around 100. So maybe, but I doubt it.”

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
opens in theaters on
September 6.

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2024-09-04 18:09