Michael Keaton says celebrities talking politics often 'do more damage'

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Michael Keaton explained why he tries to be judicious when it comes to how often he talks about politics, despite several occasions throughout the years in which he’s made his opinions known.

In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor discussed his career, his decision to live outside Hollywood and his upbringing. The 69-year-old Oscar nominee was raised outside Pittsburgh to devoted parents who were involved in local Democratic politics. Throughout the years, his upbringing and fame led Keaton into various political circles, including introducing Barack Obama at a campaign event in Montana when he was running for president. He also campaigned in Pennsylvania for Joe Biden last year.

However, he told the outlet that he tries not to spout off about politics too much. He argues that his perspective from living in a more rural part of America, specifically his ranch in Montana, taught him that famous people can be polarizing in political circles. 

"I learned a long time ago, you do more damage because you’re famous," Keaton explained. "I’ve told people, you don’t want me there. They’ll go, ‘Well of course he brought his Hollywood friend.’ You know what people forget? We all were just some person somewhere in Cincinnati or f---ing Ottawa or f---ing Cleveland."

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Michael Keaton discussed his feelings on celebrities speaking about politics publicly.  (Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images)

Despite feeling like his presence can have an unintended negative effect on people’s political opinions, Keaton spoke out against former President Donald Trump a handful of times in the leadup to the 2020 presidential election. In August, he took to Instagram to call on Trump to resign ahead of the election, noting that it would be a "very patriotic" move. Closer to the election, he criticized Trump again for his performance in his debate against Biden and called on the then-Democratic candidate to simply decide not to bother debating the president in the future. 

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Even Keaton’s upcoming movie "Worth" on , Netflix has its political leanings. The story sees Keaton portray attorney Kenneth Feinberg, the real-life man who took on the enormous task of dispersing the $7 billion Sept. 11 Victims Compensation Fund. Among the film’s producers are Barack and Michelle Obama, whose production company, Higher Ground, acquired the film as part of its partnership with the streaming giant in February.

Keaton noted that the story fit in with the kind of projects the Obamas have been wanting to tell through their Netflix partnership, specifically a time in America in which bipartisanship was present just 20 years ago. 

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"I just talked to Ken Feinberg yesterday, and we both said, sadly, this could probably never happen now," Keaton told the outlet. "Nobody had time to stop even to think about [political party]. It was a crisis."

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Somewhat in contrast to his previous statement about politics, he added: "Without sounding really pretentious … I have a job that might actually change something, or at least make people think about something, or feel something. So, when I saw it, I thought, ‘This is a good thing. This one, for sure. We all, if you have a pulse, were impacted by 9/11.’"