The name Michael Keaton might be synonymous with Hollywood stardom, but most fans might not even know that the veteran actor’s real name is something else.
Ahead of the release of his latest movie Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, the Hollywood star revealed how Michael Keaton was a name he picked out decades back, possibly from a phone book.
Highlights
- Michael Keaton's real name is Michael Douglas; he changed it due to Screen Actors Guild rules.
- He landed on "Keaton" saying: “I was looking through — I can’t remember if it was a phone book."
- The actor said he wants to start using the name Michael Keaton Douglas for movies soon.
Named Michael Douglas at birth, the actor was the youngest of seven children born to his civil engineer father George Douglas and homemaker Leona.
Michael Keaton's name is iconic in Hollywood, but only a few fans probably know that it's not his real name
Image credits: JB Lacroix/FilmMagic via Getty Images
When he first started out in showbiz, the now-72-year-old actor couldn’t use his birth name due to a Screen Actors Guild rule that prohibited new members from using an existing member’s professional name.
He got his first break in the 1979 sitcom Working Stiffs. At the time, the name Michael Douglas was already taken by his fellow actor and Oscar winner, who has starred in hits like Basic Instinct and Wall Street.
The actor had to change his name due to a Screen Actors Guild rule that prevented duplicate names
Image credits: @michaelkeatondouglas / Instagram
Image credits: @michaelkeatondouglas / Instagram
Going with Mike was also not an option for the Batman actor since talk show host Mike Douglas was already in the picture.
Hence, he landed on “Keaton.”
“I was looking through — I can’t remember if it was a phone book,” he told People in a story released this week. “I must’ve gone, ‘I don’t know, let me think of something here.’ And I went, ‘Oh, that sounds reasonable.’”
The Birdman actor chose "Keaton" for his new stage name—possibly from a phone book
The name has certainly served him well. “Michael Keaton” turned into a name emblazoned across movie posters for decades and also turned into a household name.
However, he has recently been considering a return to his roots and using a new stage name: Michael Keaton Douglas.
He said he intended to use this hybrid moniker for his latest directorial project, Knox Goes Away. But the stress of filmmaking got the better of him, and he said he “forgot” about it.
The Hollywood star's latest movie, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, is hitting the big screen on September 6
“I said, ‘Hey, just as a warning, my credit is going to be Michael Keaton Douglas.’ And it totally got away from me. And I forgot to give them enough time to put it in and create that,” he told the outlet. “But that will happen.”
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will hit the big screen on Friday, September 6, when the Oscar-nominated actor reprises his famous role along with Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara in the Tim Burton-directed sequel.