How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance).
Quote #1
THEATER CRITIC PRESS GUY: Are you afraid at all that people will say you're doing this play to battle the impression that you're a washed-up superhero?
RIGGAN: No. I'm not. And that's exactly why, twenty years ago, I refused to do Birdman 4.
Despite Riggan's denial, the stuffy theater snob pretty much hits the nail on the head. Riggan wants to prove his worth as an actor and artist and human being, and he doesn't want to use the Birdman costume to do so.
Quote #2
RIGGAN: The last time I flew here from LA, George Clooney was sitting two seats in front of me. With those cuff links and that f***ing chin. We ended up flying through this really, really horrible storm. I mean, plane was like rattling, shaking, and all the people on board crying. I mean, crying, and praying, right. I just sat there—they're crying; I sit there. And I'm thinking, oh boy, the next morning when Sam looks at the paper it's going to be Clooney's face on the front page, not mine. You know? Boom…how do you… [A beat.] Did you know that Farrah Fawcett died the exact same day as Michael Jackson?
This is right after Sylvia is trying to talk to him about Sam and their house and their marriage. All of these things are of little concern to Riggan, whose only worry is that he'll be remembered.
Quote #3
MIKE: A lot. Exactly. F*** you. Yes. This doesn't work out for you, you f*** off back to your studio pals and jump right back into that cultural genocide you guys are perpetrating. "There's a douchebag born every minute." That was P.T. Barnum's premise when he invented the circus. And you guys know nothing much has changed, and if you crank out any toxic piece of crap you make people will line up and pay to see it. But long after you're gone, I'll still be here, earning my living, baring my soul, wrestling with complex human emotions.
Mike's monologue is at once both laughable and heartfelt. We could think of him as a silly actor who doesn't really know what complex human emotions are, but we definitely understand that this play means a lot to him, just like it means a lot to Riggan. Maybe they have more in common than they think.