In director Alejandro González Iñárritu’s comedy Birdman—the story of a former superhero actor trying to shed the stigma of his former role and be taken seriously as a dramatic theater actor/director—it’s impossible to ignore the comparisons to lead actor Michael Keaton’s own professional history as the star of Batman and Batman Returns.  In an exclusive clip from EPIX and the LA Times’ Lead Actor episode of the roundtable series “Hollywood Sessions”, Keaton addresses the correlation, saying he was aware of it when he first read the script, but felt the depth of the material transcended that superficial reading of his role in the film.

Check out the full clip in which Keaton talks Birdman and Batman comparisons after the jump, and tune into “Hollywood Sessions: Lead Actor” tonight at 8pm ET/PT on EPIX.  The episode also features Robert Downey Jr., Steve Carell, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Eddie Redmayne.

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