One movie Keaton had little input turned out to be his first feature film he appeared in, October 1920's "The Saphead." Metro Pictures had approached Douglas Fairbanks to reprise his role as a wealthy man's son in one of the actor's first Broadway plays seven years earlier, 'The New Henrietta.' He was busy with his new action hero projects, so he recommended Keaton to play his part. It was quite a dramatic shift in the type of movies Buster produced and acted in before. Some critics loved his performance, with Variety stating "His quiet work in this picture is a revelation."
"The Saphead" turned out to be a good training exercise for the comedian since his later features required a bit of dramatic acting as well as the normal knockabout stunts he highlighted in his shorts.
"The Saphead" turned out to be a good training exercise for the comedian since his later features required a bit of dramatic acting as well as the normal knockabout stunts he highlighted in his shorts.