'The Founder' First Look: Michael Keaton as the Man Who Made McDonald's a Fast-Food Empire

Michael Keaton in ‘The Founder’ (The Weinstein Co.)

It would be hard to orchestrate a career comeback more successful than Michael Keaton’s. After years of relatively low-profile work, he’s returned to Hollywood’s A-list thanks to his headlining roles in the Oscars’ past two Best Picture winners, Birdman and Spotlight. And while it’s way too early to make forecasts for 2017′s Academy Awards (when has that ever stopped us!), the former Batman star will look to enter the awards conversation again later this year courtesy of his newest project, The Founder, in which he takes on the role of Ray Kroc, the man who made McDonald’s the empire it is today.

The real Ray Kroc (Getty Images)

Directed by John Lee Hancock — whose track record for bringing true-life tales to the screen includes The Rookie, The Blind Side and Saving Mr. Banks — The Founder will focus on the early entrepreneurial efforts of Kroc, a Midwestern salesman who bought the then-mom-and-pop McDonald’s franchise from Mac and Dick McDonald in the 1950s, and soon transformed it into a national (and, now, global) brand. The movie also stars Nick Offerman, BJ Novak, and Laura Dern, as Kroc’s wife Ethel. As evidenced by the first photo released from the film, it’ll be a story of a self-made man turning his larger-than-life dreams into reality — as well as a tale steeped in the style of its fast-food ‘50s milieu.

Though originally slated for November, The Founder will now hit theaters on August 5, a somewhat unconventional period to debut a film for which the Weinstein Company intends to mount a vigorous award-season campaign. Nonetheless, as Harvey Weinstein recently told EW, “Award-caliber movies should be able to open any time of year and be successful. This year I want to spread out our slate and give them the best opportunity to succeed.”

Whether it nabs Keaton a gold statuette won’t be known until next year, but in the meantime, stoke your appetite for this promising drama with the first look at Keaton as the man behind the Big Mac.