Michael Keaton Says ‘It’s Kind of Bulls—‘ That ‘Birdman’ Got Touted as His Comeback Role Amid Oscar Buzz

variety.com:

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Micheal Keaton appears to have a bone to pick with the industry for turning his Oscar-nominated role in Alejandro G.

Iñárritu’s “Birdman (or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)” into his grand Hollywood comeback. The actor never understood that awards season narrative as he never really went anywhere in the first place. “A really, really, really smart guy, a guy I liked a lot, said, ‘Comeback—that’s the story,’” Keaton recently told GQ magazine about his “Birdman” role. “I went, ‘Honestly, it’s kind of bullshit.’” Keaton’s not exactly wrong considering he never stopped acting for any extended period of time.

The actor was coming off four years of consecutive theatrical releases, including studio films like “RoboCop” and “Need for Speed,” so it’s not like he was ever out of the spotlight by the time “Birdman” brought him Oscar buzz and acclaim. “I thought I could make that [comeback] story up, but I knew I’m going to be bullshitting every time I talk about it,” Keaton said. “By the way, I know business.

I like business. Doesn’t bother me. You go, ‘This is a business, man.’” A big reason “Birdman” swallowed Keaton up in a comeback narrative is because of the movie’s own meta narrative.