Keaton talks McDonald’s biopic

Actor marks milestone with Walk of Fame honor

LOS ANGELES, July 28, (RTRS): After taking a few years off from acting, Michael Keaton has been making up for lost time with a string of impressive achievements — while making it all look so easy.

Mount an extraordinary comeback in “Birdman,” the role of a lifetime, and charm Hollywood with his selfeffacing wit and humor? Check. Land his first Oscar nomination for said role? Done.

Show remarkable range by following the raging id of that role with the thoughtful, quiet performance of Boston Globe editor Walter “Robby” Robinson in “Spotlight?” Easy. Then see your two films win best-picture Oscars back-to-back? No problem.

Now comes another career milestone, as Keaton receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his career in film July 28. While he’s understandably thrilled, noting “it’s an amazing part of the life resume,” he can’t help but sneak in a zinger. “My biggest concern about having a star on Hollywood Boulevard — if I have a concern — is gum.”

Though, like the notorious nice guy he is, he does admit to one other worry. “I feel bad asking someone to come speak for me at the event since it’s during the summer,” he says. “I mean, everyone is on vacation!”

There’s no shortage of colleagues willing to share praise for Keaton, who broke through in the 1980s with seminal hits like Tim Burton’s “Beetlejuice” and “Batman.”

Fearless

“Birdman” helmer Alejandro G. Inarritu once referred to the actor as fearless, calling him “a true artist in every sense.” John Lee Hancock, who directed

one personality that’s still submerged who is set to materialize and dominate all the others. (RTRS) Keaton as McDonald’s mogul Ray Kroc in the upcoming “The Founder,” has nothing but raves for the actor and the man. “Michael is a really great guy. He’s kind-hearted, loyal to family and friends, and loves to have fun on the set. We share a love for a calm, hardworking set — a place where everyone, from crew to cast, feelscomfortable enough to do his or her best work.”

Keaton says it was a combination of the script, by Robert D. Siegel, and Hancock that got him to sign on to the role. “John’s body of work is already amazing. He’s kind of old-fashioned in the best sense of the world; he’s such a thoughtful and solid storyteller.”

Keaton was intrigued by the story of Kroc, who saw the potential in franchising McDonald’s San Bernardinobased restaurants and turned the chain into an empire — though not without alienating some people along the way, including the McDonald brothers themselves.

“You think you know the story of Ray Kroc, but you realize you’re not even close. It’s a fascinating story, and not just about McDonald’s. It’s about the American free enterprise system, about capitalism. And when you look at the impact of McDonald’s culturally — it’s just such an interesting story.”

“The Founder” recently moved from an August release to a limited Dec. 16 slot before going wide Jan. 20, a sign of confidence from The Weinstein Co. in the film’s awards potential. And why not, considering Keaton’s back-to-back best-picture wins at the Oscars?

The film marks another doubleheader for the actor; he’s playing a real person for the second time a row. But there’s a big difference between

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Real

Sony is in talks with Pulitzer Prize winner David Auburn to write the screenplay for the movie reboot of “Charlie’s Angels.” playing Robinson, whom he was able to meet with for “Spotlight,” and Kroc, who died in 1984.

“With ‘Spotlight,’ you want to represent Robby Robinson. It was a very specific thing he did in the story, and you want to show that,” Keaton says. “With Ray, you have to be true to who Ray Kroc was, but at the same time, he’s really a representative of a time in America. You want to personify an ethos. You’re also kind of creating the personification of this time and culture and everything that goes with that.”

At the same time, Keaton didn’t want to sugarcoat some of Kroc’s more aggressive actions. “One of the first things I told John is, I will not back off if a character is unlikable,” he says. “I play the character; I have no interest in begging the audience to love me if the guy is not meant to be loved. I’m not the guy. And once we start this thing, I’m not going to back off. And John stuck to that; he never tried to make it something that he wasn’t.”

Echoes Hancock, “No matter what you may think of Ray Kroc, he was a very hard worker. Michael, too, is a hard worker. He’s a Pittsburgh guy, a roll-up your-sleeves-and-do-what’snecessary guy.”

While Keaton was able to get a sense of Kroc through documentary footage and anecdotes, he also found an influence closer to home. “If I used anything as an inspiration or a study, it was my oldest brother, Robert,” Keaton says of his sibling, who has run several businesses. “The early Ray Kroc, when he was getting started in his career and he says what McDonald’s can be, I actually have a lot of respect for his work ethic. That’s what reminds me of my brother, and hopefully

Auburn’s play “Proof” won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for drama and he co-wrote the script for the 2005 film starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Anthony Hopkins, Hope Davis I have some of that. I like to think I do. But my brother has the best work ethic of anyone. I used him as kind of my guidepost as much as anything.”

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After “The Founder,” Michael Keaton will be seen in a film adaptation of Vince Flynn’s bestselling novel series, “American Assassin.”

And he’ll return to the superhero world in “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” though rumor has him on the villain side this time.

Asked how he feels about moving from the DC world of “Batman” to Marvel’s “Spider-Man” universe, Keaton says: “You’re asking the wrong guy. I know so little about the entire culture; honestly it’s a little embarrassing. You’d think that even by osmosis I would know more about it.”

Fortunately, a friend has two young daughters who help him out. “They fill me in on the backstory of my character and all the other characters. So when I have questions, I call them.”

If people are interested in the roles Keaton takes on next, they’re obsessed with one that isn’t even confirmed: For years, rumors have swirled around a sequel to the 1988 hit “Beetlejuice.”

Asked if he knows anything about it, Keaton says, “No. Zero. You always hear things, that this is happening, and people seem to know more about it than I do.”

While he loves the character, he says, “it’s possible that ship has sailed.”

“The only way to do it is to do it right,” he says. “So much of it was improvised and so much was beautifully handmade by the artist that is Tim Burton. If you can’t get close to that, you leave it alone.”

and Jake Gyllenhaal. Auburn also wrote “The Lake House,” starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, and directed and wrote “The Girl in the Park” with Sigourney Weaver and Kate Bosworth.

Elizabeth Banks came on board to direct the rebooted film in September. Banks will also produce via her Universal-based Brownstone production company with her husband and producing partner Max Handelman.

The show “Charlie’s Angels” launched in 1976 on ABC and lasted five seasons with Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith portraying private detectives working for a benefactor named Charlie. Cheryl Ladd replaced Fawcett, with Shelley Hack and Tanya Roberts joining the series in later years. (RTRS)

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“Annabelle” director John Leonetti will helm horror-thriller “Wish Upon” for Broad Green Pictures, with shooting starting this fall.

The project, named to the 2015 Black List, was written by Barbara Marshall (“The Listener”) and will be produced by Busted Shark Production’s Sherryl Clark (“Viral”).

The film centers on a 16-year-old misfit who finds a magic box that promises a chance at the life she’s always wanted only to discover that each wish would demand a deadly payment. (RTRS)