Warren Beatty if its regular host comedians, Milton Berle. Beatty learned to do a "superb imitation of Berle and his routine," said a friend, and he often used Berle-type humor at home. His sister Shirley MacLaine's lasting memories of her brother include seeing him reading books by Eugene O'Neill or singing along to Al Jolson records. In "Rules Don't Apply" (2016), Beatty plays Howard Hughes, who is shown talking about and singing Jolson songs while flying his plane. MacLaine noted, on what made her brother want to become a filmmaker, sometimes writing, producing, directing and starring in his films: "That's why he's
Warren Beatty wrote, co-produced and directed the film. It co-stars Alden Ehrenreich and Lily Collins, with supporting actors including Annette Bening, Alec Baldwin, Matthew Broderick, Candice Bergen, Ed Harris and Martin Sheen. Some have said that Beatty's film is 40 years in the making. In the mid-1970s, Beatty signed a contract with Warner Bros. to star in, produce, write, and possibly direct a film about Howard Hughes. The project was put on hold when Beatty began "Heaven Can Wait". Initially, Beatty planned to film the life story of John Reed and Hughes back-to-back, but as he was getting deeper into the project,