Michael Keaton recently told The New York Times that he regretted his performance in Tim Burton’s 2019 film “Dumbo.” The Oscar nominee played a greedy amusement park owner in the film opposite a cast that included Colin Farrell, Eva Green and Danny DeVito. “Dumbo” received mixed reviews from critics and was considered a financial disappointment for Disney, grossing just over $350 million at the worldwide box office.
“I love working with Tim, but I don’t think we’ve ever analyzed why we work together; we just do it,” Keaton told The Times. “I think I let him down on one film, but that’s just my opinion, and it still bothers me to this day. I didn’t know anything about ‘Dumbo.’ I failed on ‘Dumbo.’
Burton joined Keaton in the Times interview and interjected, “I don't even know what you're talking about, but that's okay.”
Critics were divided over Keaton's villainous role in the film. diverse'Owen Gleiberman wrote in his review that “Keaton's performance as the villainous Vandiver is disappointingly weak; a bad guy with a sandpaper voice but no layers.”
Keaton's disappointment with “Dumbo” mirrors that of Burton, who has been brutally honest in the years since the film's 2019 theatrical release about how making a Disney blockbuster wasn't exactly a fun experience. In a recent interview with diverseBurton said he considered ending his directing career after the film.
“Honestly, after 'Dumbo,' I didn't really know,” Burton said. “I thought that could have been the end, really. I could have retired, or become…well, I was never going to be an animator again, that was it.”
Burton credited the upcoming Beetlejuice film with rekindling his interest in filmmaking, adding: “A lot of times when you go into Hollywood, you try to be in charge of what you do with the budget and everything else, but sometimes you can lose yourself a little bit. It's reinforced in me the feeling that it's important to do what I want to do, because then everyone benefits.”
Speaking at the 2019 Lumière Festival, Burton said: “The thing about Dumbo is it made me think my Disney days were over. I realised I was Dumbo, that I was working in this huge, terrible circus and I needed to escape. It’s a bit autobiographical on a certain level.”
Keaton and Burton have been longtime friends and collaborators, having worked together on “Beetlejuice,” “Batman,” “Batman Forever,” “Dumbo” and “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.” The latter film is set to hit theaters Sept. 6 from Warner Bros.
