# Whatever happened to Warren Beatty? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 12, 2013, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292 "2013-07-12T06:02:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/1 "2013-07-12T06:02:35Z")
His name was mentioned in a recent thread and it made me realize how long it has been since I’ve heard anything about him. I checked IMDB and saw he hasn’t made a movie since 2001. He wrote, produced, acted, and directed so I’d assume he’d have been able to make movies if he had wanted to. His last few movies were not that great but he made some popular and critically acclaimed ones also. Did he announce he was retiring back then? Were there health problems? There was talk that he might go into politics but he’s never run for office. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/2 "2013-07-12T07:58:51Z")
He hasn’t made a truly great movie since 1981. Retirement might be kind of sensible. ---
**Author:** ![Sefton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Sefton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sefton)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 9:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/3 "2013-07-12T09:43:03Z")
I heard he went up to Saratoga, where his horse naturally won. And then he flew his Lear jet up to Nova Scotia to see the total eclipse of the sun. So he’s busy. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/4 "2013-07-12T12:11:12Z")
> [@Sefton](#): > > I heard he went up to Saratoga, where his horse naturally won. > And then he flew his Lear jet up to Nova Scotia to see the total eclipse of the sun. > > So he’s busy. Hate to tell you, but that eclipse was in 1972. I managed to [del]bully[/del] talk my dad into flying me up there to see it. (We actually flew in a Cessna 172, not a LearJet, and to PEI instead of Nova Scotia, but it was total, and it was awesome.) ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/5 "2013-07-12T12:17:22Z")
Well, he’s 76. Here’s an entertainment news story on him from last April: > **[Still going strong after 21 years! Warren Beatty and Annette Bening smile on...](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2317174/Warren-Beatty-Annette-Bening-going-strong-21-years.html)** > > The Hollywood power couple appeared to be in great spirits as they joined friends at the trendy seafood restaurant Crustacean in Beverly Hills Monday. Quote: “However, the Bulworth actor was featured in the upcoming documentary Hollywood Renegade about blacklisted author Budd Schulberg, who penned What Makes Sammy Run?” ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/6 "2013-07-12T12:19:05Z")
> [@Krokodil](#): > > He hasn’t made a truly great movie since 1981. Retirement might be kind of sensible. [Bulworth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulworth) (1998) that he directed, starred in, and co-wrote and co-produced, was pretty good. Critics liked it (as did I) and it apparently did good box office, albeit on a limited release. It was nominated for lots of awards, including an Oscar for screenplay, and actually won _Best Script_ from the L.A. Film Critics Association. It was also recently publicly referenced by President Obama (though perhaps he is just lusting for Halle Berry). I think _Bugsy_ from 1991 did pretty well too. (And are you saying _Reds_ was a truly great movie? :dubious: I liked _Bulworth_ better, frankly.) ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/7 "2013-07-12T12:21:40Z")
He got married to cute Annette and had a bunch of kids. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/8 "2013-07-12T12:22:18Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > Hate to tell you, but that eclipse was in 1972. You might want to look at [this](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You%27re_So_Vain). I realised this morning I hadn’t seen Reese Witherspoon or Drew Barrymore in ages. I don’t think they’ve retired, they’re probably just doing stuff that isn’t in my field of view. ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/9 "2013-07-12T12:28:19Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > You might want to look at [this](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You%27re_So_Vain). > > I realised this morning I hadn’t seen Reese Witherspoon or Drew Barrymore in ages. I don’t think they’ve retired, they’re probably just doing stuff that isn’t in my field of view. Reese just had a baby this last year. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/10 "2013-07-12T13:42:08Z")
He apparently pulled a Cary Grant and retired- not even the hint of any credits as actor, producer, writer, director, or anything else on imdb. Annette’s very busy: her next high profile movie will be as the wife of Ernest Hemingway (Anthony Hopkins), and she’ll apparently be playing Catherine the Great in a comedy set in imperial Russia(details of which are sketchy). > [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > He got married to cute Annette and had a bunch of kids. Their son Stephen (born Kathlyn) was in the news for coming out publicly as a transitioning FtM transgendered boy. Very good looking kid (meaning Gregor Mendel was on to something) and far better spoken and less clinically depressed seeming than Chaz Bono, so I’m half expecting him to probably be “the face” of transgender rights movements in the coming years as he gets more comfortable and more exposure. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/11 "2013-07-12T14:24:49Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I realised this morning I hadn’t seen Reese Witherspoon or Drew Barrymore in ages. I don’t think they’ve retired, they’re probably just doing stuff that isn’t in my field of view. > [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](#): > > Reese just had a baby this last year. So did Barrymore. In fact, the two children were born only one day apart. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/12 "2013-07-12T18:39:13Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > (And are you saying _Reds_ was a truly great movie? :dubious: I liked _Bulworth_ better, frankly.) I liked Bulworth a lot but I do think Reds is a truly great movie. I thought so when it came out and it was confirmed for me when I saw a restoration print on the big screen last year. It held up beautifully, everything. I was sad it didn’t win more Oscars. It did win 3 (Best Director, Supporting Actress and Cinematography) but it was nominated for 12, and it lost Best Picture to Chariots of Fire. Trivia: Reds won two less Oscars than Raiders of the Lost Ark that year. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/13 "2013-07-12T22:01:24Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > He apparently pulled a Cary Grant and retired- not even the hint of any credits as actor, producer, writer, director, or anything else on imdb. That’s pretty much the case. His last movie ( **Town and Country** ) was such an unpleasant experience and bombed so badly that he probably figured he didn’t need to do this crap any more and quietly bowed out. Incidentally, it’s not as if Beatty hasn’t been offered anything over the last 12 years. For example, Tarantino asked him to play Bill in **Kill Bill** but he declined. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/14 "2013-07-12T22:06:13Z")
> [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](#): > > Reese just had a baby this last year. Drew had one within the past few years too. She’s done commentary on Turner Classic Movies in recent months. ETA: I then scrolled down and saw this was already addressed. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2013, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/15 "2013-07-13T08:13:18Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > You might want to look at [this](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You%27re_So_Vain). So the guy who probably thinks that song was about him has an A, an E and an R in his name. I’m afraid that eliminates none of the major candidates: [ul] [li] D **A** ni **E** l Armst **R** ong[/li][li] W **A\*\*\*\*R** ren B **E** atty[/li][li] Mick J **A** gg **E\*\*\*\*R** [/li][li] Jam **E** s T **A** ylo **R** [/li][li] D **A** vid Law **R** ence Geff **E** n[/li][li] David B **R** uc **E** C **A** ssidy[/li][li] David Bowie, birth name: D **A** vid Robe **R** t Jon **E** s[/li][li] C **A** t Stevens, birth name: Stev **E** n Demetre Geo **R** giou[/li][/ul] Even the joke candidate, Mark Felt, fits. Anyway, what does this have to do with what Billie Joe McAllister threw off the Tallahatchie Bridge? ---
**Author:** ![42fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/b487fb/32.png) [@42fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/42fish)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/16 "2013-07-14T19:30:19Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Anyway, what does this have to do with what Billie Joe McAllister threw off the Tallahatchie Bridge? I’m pretty sure he was getting rid of the murder weapon from “The Night the Lights Went Out In Georgia.” ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/17 "2013-07-14T22:51:08Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > So the guy who probably thinks that song was about him has an A, an E and an R in his name. I’m afraid that eliminates none of the major candidates: > [ul] > [li] D **A** ni **E** l Armst **R** ong[/li][li] W **A\*\*\*\*R** ren B **E** atty[/li][li] Mick J **A** gg **E\*\*\*\*R** [/li][li] Jam **E** s T **A** ylo **R** [/li][li] D **A** vid Law **R** ence Geff **E** n[/li][li] David B **R** uc **E** C **A** ssidy[/li][li] David Bowie, birth name: D **A** vid Robe **R** t Jon **E** s[/li][li] C **A** t Stevens, birth name: Stev **E** n Demetre Geo **R** giou[/li][/ul] > Even the joke candidate, Mark Felt, fits. > > Anyway, what does this have to do with what Billie Joe McAllister threw off the Tallahatchie Bridge? As Simon herself has pointed out, she had not even met Geffen when she wrote the song in 1971. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2013, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whatever-happened-to-warren-beatty/663292/18 "2013-07-14T23:56:07Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > Hate to tell you, but that eclipse was in 1972. > > I managed to [del]bully[/del] talk my dad into flying me up there to see it. (We actually flew in a Cessna 172, not a LearJet, and to PEI instead of Nova Scotia, but it was total, and it was awesome.) So…you think the song is about you?