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New York Post
Michael Keaton wants to go by his real name again — which is shared with another Hollywood star
By Eric Todisco,
2 days ago
Say his (new) name three times.
Michael Keaton, who was born Michael John Douglas, revealed in a new interview with People that he wants to start going by Michael Keaton Douglas after coming up with a stage name over 50 years ago.
The “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” star said he had plans to begin the professional name change while he was directing and starring in the 2023 film “Knox Goes Away,” but he “forgot” to make it official.
Michael Keaton at the “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” photo-call in London on Aug. 30. Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images
“I said, ‘Hey, just as a warning, my credit is going to be Michael Keaton Douglas,'” Keaton said in the interview published Wednesday.
“But it totally got away from me,” he explained. “And I forgot to give them enough time to put it in and create that. But that will happen.”
Michael Keaton at the “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” premiere at the Venice Film Festival. Luca Carlino/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Keaton could not use his birth name when he started in Hollywood in the 1970s because of the Screen Actors Guild’s rule that members can’t have the same name as each other.
Michael Douglas, famous for his roles in “Wall Street” and “Romancing the Stone,” was already a part of SAG, as was singer and talk show host Mike Douglas.
Michael Douglas at the Atlantida Mallorca Film Fest in July 2024. Getty Images
So, Keaton had to come up with a stage name in order to stick around in the business.
“I was looking through — I can’t remember if it was a phone book,” he recalled to People. “I must’ve gone, ‘I don’t know, let me think of something here.’ And I went, ‘Oh, that sounds reasonable.’”
Michael Keaton at the UK premiere of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” on Aug. 29, 2024. WireImage
“I got a gig. I was just starting out and I got this job, and because of union there was Mike Douglas, who used to have a talk show, and Michael Douglas, the movie star and actor,” Keaton explained. “Somebody said, ‘Well you have to change your name.’ And I said, ‘Well I don’t want to change my name. I’m very proud of my name.'”
Michael Douglas at the Atlantida Mallorca Film Fest. Getty Images
“By the way,” the “Birdman” star added, “I’m trying to ease my name back in because I’m proud of my name.”
“So I changed my name. What’s crazy is I used my real name, Michael John Douglas, for everything except on a marquee or a gig. People get very confused. We’d be going somewhere and there will be a driver with a sign saying Michael Douglas — and then I show up,” Keaton said with a laugh. “And they look so confused.”
Keaton said that now he “doesn’t bother” explaining his name change to people. “I kind of enjoy watching them go, ‘Wait, who is he?’ “
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