Michael Keaton has been having something of a Renaissance lately, resurrectingfan-favorite roles like Beetlejuiceand Batman, butGoodrichis here to remind audiences that he has just as much to offer in an original story as in a sequel or reboot. The new movie is the sophomore effort from writer-director Hallie Meyers-Shyer, who made her feature film debut directing Reese Witherspoon in 2017’sHome Again.Goodrichis yet another tale of family and friendship, this time centered on a man whose wife checks herself into rehab and leaves him alone to take care of their 9-year-old twins.
Keaton’s protagonist, Andy Goodrich, is an art dealer who was more focused on career than family throughout his first marriage and must now deal with some of those consequences. to get some advice on raising his youngest children, he enlists the help of Grace (That ’70s Showstar Mila Kunis), the eldest daughter from his first marriage. Grace has never had the chance to see Andy as a present father, but by helping him become one, she can also repair the wounds of their relationship before her own first child is born.
Goodrich Review: A Midlife Crisis Comedy-Drama That Finds Its Heart In Michael Keaton’s Performance
Goodrich gets the most mileage, dramatically and comedically, out of Andy’s personal success, and Keaton’s performance is the key to that success.
Screen Rantinterviewed Michael Keatonand Mila Kunis about the evolution of their characters inGoodrich, their natural family chemistry on set, and how the movie allowed Keaton to press Andie MacDowell’s buttons once again a few decades afterMultiplicity.
Mila Kunis Breaks Down The Complicated Father-Daughter Dynamic In Goodrich
“It’s the most fun you can have acting, and I love it.”
Screen Rant: Mila, when Grace was a kid, Andy struggled with being present due to focusing on building his career, which affected his time management as a parent. Now in 2024, he’s parenting the nine-year-old twins, and Grace sees Andy becoming the father she always wanted. How would you describe the evolution of Grace’s relationship with Andy?
Mila Kunis: What a great question. I guess I would have to say it comes to a place of acceptance. I think, oftentimes, we hold people in our minds and in our memories for who they used to be instead of allowing people to evolve and become who they are today.
I feel like her evolution is accepting her dad for who he is, not holding the mistakes that he made in the past [against him], and almost moving forward and accepting him for the person that he’s becoming and evolving. Loving him for that instead of having any sort of resentment towards the person that he used to be.
Screen Rant:Goodrichis an incredible film about modern parenting, growth, and new beginnings. It made me reflect on my own relationship with my father, and it also made me reflect on myself as a parent, so it had everything for me. Halle said Goodrich was written with you in mind. What intrigued you as an actor about taking on the role of Andy Goodrich, and can you talk about Andy’s evolution from being disconnected to becoming a more involved father?
Michael Keaton: Well, it was simply well-written. I hadn’t done anything like this in a while, and it was a good script. Here’s a big thing: it was going to be shot in Los Angeles, and Los Angeles plays a part in this movie, which I like.
Most people care about things [like] family. It’s primal, man. It’s clans, and people looking out for one another or not. But it wasn’t a big decision; she and I had a meeting or two, and I knew she was talented and smart, so I said, “Sure, I’d love to do it.”
Screen Rant: Mila, Grace steps up significantly for her father and siblings while pregnant, and you bring so much to the role. Can you talk about depicting Grace’s strength and vulnerability through these challenging circumstances?
Mila Kunis: Not to echo what Michael said, but the script was just really well-written. I will say, I think the character was very much on the page, and it was a matter of having fun with Michael in the scenes. For me personally, it’s so much more about the relationship that two people going into this have clearly had for 30 years — 30 plus years, and that’s aging myself down. I just wanted to make sure that was front forward; relationship above all else, and then everything else was on paper.
It’s easy to really play off him because Michael is — spoiler alert — really funny and really fun to act with. There are oftentimes actors that are very specific with their acting and how they do it. It’s just how they do it, and it’s very much how it’s going to be done in that rhythm and whatever. But in a beautiful way, [Michael’s] all over the place. You never know what you’re going to get. It’s the most fun you’re able to have acting, and I love it. It’s where I feel like I thrive the most; in this idea of spontaneity and of like, “What’s next? Where are we going?”
Again, Grace was on paper, but everything else I think was just the day of.
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“He’s everything you want Michael Keaton to be… and more.”
Screen Rant: Michael, I loveMultiplicity. It’s one of my favorite movies. It was great seeing you reunited with Andie MacDowell. We haven’t seen you together on screen for 27 years, and that chemistry is still there and still magical. Can you talk about reuniting with her in this film?
Michael Keaton: Yeah, it was fun. I was glad when she came up. I hadn’t thought about it, and then Hallie said, “Hey, what do you think?” I thought, “Yeah, that’d be good.” As long as it wasn’t distracting. Like, “Oh, those are the two people who were…”
When we shot Multiplicity, one of my, I would so look forward to my scenes with her because I used to love making her laugh so much. I’d look at her face, like when I’m screwing around. You’re in the scene, and you go, “I’m going to make her break.” And they’d go, “Come on, we’ve got to do the scene…” Trying to watch people not break is really fun and kind of sadistic, and I used to really torture her.
In that [“tuck, tuck, fold”] scene, which is one of my favorites, he’s number three. I think he’s a sensitive dude, and he’s also obsessive. When we’d run that, I’d do it differently every time and kind of invented that whole thing. I was just riffing on how to do things properly. And so “tuck, tuck, fold” became a thing. [Laughs] I love breaking her.
She looked great, by the way. She’s such a nice woman, though I’m a little worried about her now. I think she moved to South Carolina, and they sure went through some stuff. She and I are thinking of all those people, for one thing, out there. Way more important than nos.
Screen Rant: Can you both talk about building that chemistry together on set and making it so natural?
Michael Keaton: I don’t know. It wasn’t that hard.
Mila Kunis: I love Michael so much. I have to tell you, he’s so fun. I think people sometimes just forget to simply have fun. It’s okay to laugh, and it’s okay to poke at each other, and it’s okay to be silly. I think those are the things that bring what people call chemistry to screen; the idea of being able to mess around with one another and be goofy and whatnot.
It doesn’t take away from the work or any of that, but it just allows you to be human with one another. I had the most fun playing around with Michael. I really did. I mean, I truly cannot. He’s funny — as if he’s not here. He’s funny, he’s smart, he’s present, and he’s goofy. He’s everything you want Michael Keaton to be. He’s everything you want him to be and more.
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Screen Rant: Michael, Amy Pascal’s a producer on this film, and she also produced you inSpider-Man: Homecoming. Now thatSpider-Man 4has found its director in Daniel Destin Cretin, have you spoken to Amy or Kevin Feige about reprising your role as the best Spider-Man cinematic villain, Adrian Toomes, or Vulture?
Michael Keaton: Oh, wow. That’s an interesting character, that guy. Actually, I was there for a minute in the second one… Anyway, we could talk about that some other time. That really was a fun experience, but I haven’t talked to anybody about anything. [In a joking tone] I try not to talk to anybody. I really don’t like people.
More About Goodrich (2024)
Andy Goodrich’s (Michael Keaton) life is upended when his wife and mother of their nine-year-old twins enters a 90-day rehab program, leaving him on his own with their young kids. Thrust into the world of modern parenthood, Goodrich leans on his daughter from his first marriage, Grace (Mila Kunis), as he ultimately evolves into the father Grace never had.
Goodrich
Cast
When Andy Goodrich’s wife enters rehab, he’s left to care for their young twins alone. As he navigates modern parenthood, he relies on his daughter Grace from his first marriage, ultimately becoming the father she never had.
