Some folks have stage names for the vibes (Sting, The Edge, The Rock), while others adopt new monikers out of necessity. Michael Keaton, whose real name is Michael Douglas, is a prime example of the latter. Now, he’s looking to take back his real surname by integrating it into his better-known fake name.
As the story goes, when Keaton went to join the Screen Actors Guild, he found that both Michael Douglas (yes, that Michael Douglas, of Wall Street fame) and Mike Douglas had already been taken. Because SAG rules stipulate no actors can work under the same name, he picked “Keaton” on a whim (perhaps by flipping through a phone book, depending on which version of the tale you choose to believe).
“I was looking through — I can’t remember if it was a phone book,” Keaton told People. “I must’ve gone, ‘I don’t know, let me think of something here.’ And I went, ‘Oh, that sounds reasonable.’”
Thus, Michael Keaton was born, and it would be the moniker under which he’d find quite a bit of success, including classics like Beetlejuice, Batman, Birdman, and more. As his career continues and he approaches his mid-70s, he’s ready to reintroduce his birth name, intending to go by Michael Keaton Douglas on future projects.
According to the same People interview, he meant to debut the new name on his 2023 directorial effort Knox Goes Away, but “forgot” once the heat of production got underway. While he’s still billed as “Michael Keaton” for his recent appearance in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, look out for “Michael Keaton Douglas” on future projects.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice hits theaters on Friday, September 6th. Read our full review of the film, in which Consequence Senior Entertainment Editor Liz Shannon Miller details the “less scary, more silly sequel.” You can also stream the original Beetlejuice on Max, or on VOD via Apple TV+ or Amazon.