Summary

• Michael Keaton is a versatile actor with an extensive filmography, portraying a wide range of characters from attorneys to superheroes.
• Keaton's career spans almost 50 years, and his consistently good quality of work is impressive.
• Some of Keaton's best films include "The Founder," "Batman," and "Spotlight," a diverse list that exemplifies his range.

Michael Keaton has proven to be an incredibly versatile actor with his extensive filmography, from comedies to dramas to iconic superhero films. The Pennsylvania-born star has portrayed everything from attorneys and company CEOs to undead bio-exorcists and superheroes. Suffice it to say there are some fantastic movies in Michael Keaton's career, which makes sense given how often this amazing actor collaborates with some of the greatest movie directors.

Keaton's movie career began in 1978 when he played a sailor in the comedy film Rabbit Test, but he had been a regular on the small screen for three years before that. In other words, Keaton has been acting for almost 50 years, which is an impressive achievement in itself. Considering the consistently good quality of his work in that time is even more impressive, and Michael Keaton's best ten films are to be ired.

10 The Founder (2016)

Keaton Plays Ray Croc, Who Purchased McDonald's In 1961

The biographical drama movie The Founder chronicles business executive and traveling milkshake sales agent Ray Croc's purchasing and expansion of the McDonald's fast food restaurant chain and his ruthless forcing out of the company's original owners, the McDonald brothers Maurice and Richard. Keaton plays Croc with allure, energy, and aggression, brilliantly depicting his single-mindedness regarding his vision for the iconic establishment. The Founder is essentially a dark McDonald's commercial, but that doesn't stop it from being an intelligent biopic that's thoroughly entertaining, and it irably avoids any sentimental "Hollywoodization" that too many movies like it fall into the trap of doing.

9 Batman (1989)

Keaton's First Outing As Gotham's Dark Knight

Tim Burton's Batman is often described as the first modern Batman movie, as it completely reinvented the character for the big screen following the 1966 Batman TV show starring Adam West. It chronicles the early period in the Dark Knight's crime-fighting career and his first encounter with his archnemesis, the Joker, played superbly by Jack Nicholson. Keaton was a surprise choice for Batman but immediately made the role his own, proving doubters wrong with a charming and relatable performance - even if Nicholson did steal the show in almost every scene they were in together. Thanks to his subtle yet intense performance, Keaton is the definitive Batman to many people.

8 Jackie Brown (1997)

Keaton Plays Good Guy ATF Agent Ray Nicolette

Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown is a crime movie about a flight attendant who gets caught smuggling money from Mexico to the United States at the behest of a Los Angeles arms trafficker. Pam Grier stars as the titular Brown and is superb, while regular Tarantino collaborator Samuel L. Jackson plays gun runner Ordell Robbie. Keaton portrays ATF Agent Ray Nicolette with assurance. Jackie Brown is Tarantino's only adapted screenplay, which explains its streamlined plot compared to his other offerings. It might not be one of Tarantino's best movies, but it's still brilliant, offering plenty of charm, wit, and memorable dialogue.

7 Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

Keaton Portrays Spidey Villain Adrian Toomes, AKA Vulture

The 16th installment in the phenomenon that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming sees Tom Holland's Peter Parker trying to balance his schoolwork and personal life with his new responsibilities as Spider-Man, made all the more complicated with the emergence of the villainous Adrian Toomes, AKA Vulture, played by Keaton. It's fun, action-packed, colorful, and buoyed by Holland's likable portrayal of the Webbed Wonder. Keaton proves he can play the comic book bad guy as well as he can the hero, making Toomes far more interesting than the character ever was in the comics thanks to his incredible, menacing performance.

6 Batman Returns (1982)

Keaton's First Reprisal Of His Role As Batman

Before his recent appearance as an older version of the character in The Flash, Keaton's only reprisal from his original appearance as Batman came three years later in Batman Returns. The sequel sees the Dark Knight forced to combat the dual threat of Christopher Walken's millionaire industrialist Max Shreck Danny DeVito's deformed crime boss, the Penguin - a task made more complicated by the emergence of Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman, who wants Shreck for herself. It's one of the best Batman movies ever, and Keaton is excellent, standing out in an impressive ensemble cast. Batman Returns is strange but boasts a suitably dark and brooding atmosphere, a terrific look, and outstanding action.

5 The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

Keaton As United States Attorney General Ramsey Clark

The historical legal drama The Trial of the Chicago Seven chronicles the eponymous court case of the anti-Vietnam War protestors, the Chicago 7. Charged with conspiracy and crossing state lines to incite riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, all convictions were later reversed on appeal. The outstanding cast includes Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Sacha Baron Cohen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Frank Langella, Eddie Redmayne, and Keaton, who plays United States Attorney General Ramsey Clark with confidence and poise. This film is a compelling insight into the dramas and corruption of courtrooms and government, albeit a partially fictionalized depiction of it all.

4 Beetlejuice (1988)

Iconic Keaton Performance As The Eponymous "Bio-exorcist"

The fantasy comedy horror Beetlejuice couldn't feel like more of a Tim Burton movie if it tried. It follows a couple who, having recently died and struggling to scare away the new occupants of their home, recruit an undead "bio-exorcist" named Beetlejuice to help, and shenanigans follow. It stars Keaton in the eponymous role, and he is fabulous, funny, and massively entertaining. The brilliant ensemble cast includes Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Jeffrey Jones, Catherine O'Hara, and Winona Ryder. Beetlejuice is unique and imaginative, with some of the most memorable aesthetics in film history, and it combines humor and scares expertly, epitomizing the term "comedy horror."

3 Toy Story 3 (2010)

Keaton Is The Ken To Jodi Benson's Barbie

The third installment in Pixar's iconic Toy Story franchise, Toy Story 3 is an animated comedy-drama about a group of toys that come alive when their owner isn't present. In the film, their owner, Andy, is 17 and heading to college, and the toys accidentally get donated to a daycare center. The regular cast returns, including Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, and John Ratzenberger, performing with energy and enthusiasm. Keaton voices Ken, a doll at the daycare center and Barbie's boyfriend, with plenty of humor, even though it's a small role. Toy Story 3 is simply wonderful, as it's visually incredible, funny, emotional, and engaging from start to finish.

2 Birdman (2014)

Keaton Plays Faded Hollywood Star Riggan Thomson

Birdman - or Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) - is a black comedy-drama movie about a faded Hollywood star's attempts to write, direct, and star in a Broadway adaptation of Raymond Carver's short story, "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love," while the voice of his past character, the superhero Birdman, torments him. Keaton is phenomenal as Riggan Thomson, the faded actor, a role that earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Able comes from Zach Galifianakis, Naomi Watts, Emma Stone, and Edward Norton, the latter pair who received Best ing Actress and Actor nominations. Birdman is beautifully written, directed, filmed, acted, and an entertaining technical triumph.

1 Spotlight (2015)

Keaton Portrays Newspaper Editor Walter "Robby" Robinson

Spotlight is a biographical drama following The Boston Globe's "Spotlight" team, the oldest continuously operating newspaper investigative journalist unit in America, loosely based on a series of stories by the team that won The Globe the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. It chronicles the team's investigation into countless cases of child sex abuse by Catholic priests in their local area. The phenomenal cast includes Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber, John Slattery, Stanley Tucci, and Keaton, who plays Walter "Robby" Robinson, the team's editor, with aplomb. It won the Best Picture Academy Award with good reason. Spotlight is sensitive yet hard-hitting, engaging, and Michael Keaton's best film.