Michael Keaton Thought He ‘Sucked’ in Disney’s Live-Action ‘Dumbo’ Remake

Michael Keaton is giving himself an honest review.

The Oscar nominee, 72, reflected on his long-standing relationship with director Tim Burton in a joint interview with The New York Times published on Tuesday, August 27. Keaton has starred in various Burton productions including Beetlejuice , Batman , and one movie that he thinks he could have been better in — Dumbo .

Keaton played the ruthless entrepreneur V.A. Vandervere in Burton’s 2019 live-action remake for Disney, starring opposite Colin Farrell , Danny DeVito and Eva Green .

“I love working with Tim so much, but I don’t think we ever really analyzed why we work pretty well together — we just do,” Keaton told the Times . “I think I let him down on one movie, but that’s just me, and it bugs me to this day. I was clueless on Dumbo . I sucked in Dumbo .”

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Burton, 66, told his frequent collaborator, “I don’t even know what you’re talking about, but whatever.”

Keaton and Burton’s latest movie together is Beetlejuice Beetlejuice , a sequel to Burton’s 1988 cult fantasy comedy. Speaking to the Times , Keaton recalled that he was unsure whether the original Beetlejuice would be a hit.

“There was a screening and it didn’t particularly go well. I remember feeling so badly because I thought, ‘Oh, man, that was such a fun experience, just absolutely unique and a truly authentic collaboration,’” he explained. “Then Tim called and said, ‘Hey, I want to do a real quick reshoot,’ and I’m thinking to myself, ‘Geez, I thought this was done, we were dead in the water!’”

“We did it and someone sent me a potential trailer and I thought, ‘Holy moly, if it gets even close to this, this is really good,’” added Keaton.

Following the success of Beetlejuice , Keaton admitted he was apprehensive about reprising his iconic role as eccentric exorcist Betelgeuse.

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“I was nervous about doing this again, even up to the point where we all showed up,” he said. “It’s a really, really, really hard thing to recreate, but it was the same and better. The quality of each thing seemed to be just a little richer.”

The sequel reunites Keaton with Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara , while Jenna Ortega joins the cast as Astrid Deetz, the daughter of Ryder’s character, Lydia.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice hits theaters on Friday, September 6.