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Michael Keaton wants to use his real name, Michael Douglas
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Michael Keaton wants to use his real name, Michael Douglas

Say his (new) name three times.

Michael Keaton, born Michael John Douglas, revealed in a new interview with People that he now wants to be called Michael Keaton Douglas, after coming up with a stage name 50 years ago.

The “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” star said he had plans to make the professional name change while directing and starring in the 2023 film “Knox Goes Away,” but he “forgot” to make it official.

Michael Keaton at the “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” photo shoot in London on August 30. Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

“I said, ‘Hey, as a heads up, my credit goes to Michael Keaton Douglas,’” Keaton said in the interview published Wednesday.

“But it completely slipped my mind,” 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 premiere of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” at the Venice Film Festival. Luca Carlino/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

When Keaton began acting in Hollywood in the 1970s, he was unable to use his birth name because the Screen Actors Guild prohibited members from using the same name.

Michael Douglas, known for his roles in “Wall Street” and “Romancing the Stone,” was already a member 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 to survive in the music world.

“I was flipping through — I can’t remember if it was a phone book,” he told People. “I must have thought, ‘I don’t know, let me think of something.’ And I thought, ‘Oh, that sounds reasonable.'”

Keaton previously addressed the drama surrounding his name during an appearance on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” in 2017.

Michael Keaton at the UK premiere of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” on August 29, 2024. Wire Image

“I got a gig. I was just starting out and I got this job, and through the 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’ve got 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 Festival. Getty Images

“By the way,” the “Birdman” star added, “I’m trying to slowly get my name back in there because I’m proud of my name.”

“So I changed my name. The funny thing is, I used my real name, Michael John Douglas, for everything except a marquee or a gig. People get so confused. We’d go somewhere and there’d be a driver with a sign that said Michael Douglas — and I’d pull up,” Keaton said, laughing. “And they looked so confused.”

Keaton said he now “doesn’t bother” to explain his name change to people. “I kind of like seeing them say, ‘Wait, who is he?'”