How Keanu Reeves manages to be a Hollywood star and a simple guy at the same time

Keanu Reeves has played just about every type of character during his career: a romantic hero and a prudent lawyer, a cold-blooded killer and a hacker. However, many people, when they hear his name, do not first remember his filmography, but the stories that characterize him as a person. Dozens of charity campaigns, a loving relationship with fans and a simple and completely non-Hollywood lifestyle can say much more about this actor than the works of his filmography.

We, from awesome.club, we have been in love with the actor for a long time. And here are some reasons why. Check out!

This couple of friends is as exemplary for Hollywood as DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. They became friends in the 1990s on the set of the movie Full Speed. When they first met, Sandra Bullock talked a lot. But the more the actress spoke, the quieter he became. After a few days, Keanu Reeves handed him a note that read, “I’ve been thinking about what you told me.”

The actress was delighted: “How many people know someone as thoughtful as that?” And of course, that day the first conversation of future friends took place. And this time, they both spoke. By the way, it was revealed on a TV show that the classmates had a “little crush” on each other at the time. But the actor didn’t dare talk about what he was feeling, and she only spoke of her feelings years later. But they managed to create something just as precious — true friendship.

The stories of the actor giving up his own salary to be able to hire another star for the cast of the film or to increase the budget of special effects always call the attention of the public. In addition, he often gives generous gifts to fans and colleagues. But, just as important, he cares about the people around him.

According to Carrie-Anne Moss, his co-star in the Matrix films, he goes out of his way to make sure people don’t feel like they’re close to a star. According to her, on the set of recordings, he worked harder than anyone else, with a thirst to learn more about the complexities of the job. And he paid attention even to the stupid requests of his colleagues. One day Moss casually asked her to recommend movies for her children. Despite fatigue after the day’s work, Keanu Reeves sat down and carefully made a list.

Today, Keanu Reeves is a superstar, and his name is known to nearly every moviegoer on the planet. But the actor had to fight for it for a while. His name is of Hawaiian origin and means “Cool breeze over the mountains”. Sounds pretty exotic, don’t you think? Apparently, the actor’s manager thought so too when, early in his career, he suggested he adopt a pseudonym.

Another aspiring actor would certainly listen to peers in pursuit of fame, but that was not the case. The star purposely suggested a name worse than the other: Chuck Spadina, Templeton Paige Taylor. And each new name sounded even more ridiculous than the last. In the end, the agent allowed him to use his real name.

After the success of the action film Full Speed, 20th Fox Century decided to make a sequel to the film’s story. However, Keanu Reeves did not like the script and, despite the multimillion-dollar contract he was offered, he turned down the job to participate in a theatrical production of Hamlet. The actor aroused the ire of an influential studio, which for many years held a grudge and did not invite him to big projects.

In addition to co-writing several art books, since 2017 he has started creating his own series of comics. The actor decided to create a superhero himself, which in the future he will be able to play on the big screen. By the way, the character resembles Neo, from The Matrix, and John Wick at the same time.

Keanu Reeves’ addiction to his work is legendary. For him, studying martial arts, riding, surfing or learning to sing, if the role requires it, is not a problem. Also, they can’t get him off the set even if he’s sick. For example, one of the fight scenes in the movie “John Wick” was filmed when he had a fever of 40°C.

Keanu Reeves tries to be as truthful as possible with the audience, so he takes his time preparing for his roles. To portray in theaters a beggar he won the lottery, he simply took his toothbrush and went to sleep in an alley with the homeless. He spent 4 days there, until they began to recognize him. During that time, the actor deeply connected with his new neighbors.

They taught him street survival tricks and shared their stories. When the actor’s identity was revealed, he invited his new friends to dinner at a restaurant. Unfortunately, the film was never shot.

Reeves is not one of those stars who refuses to take a selfie or chat with fans, who post numerous accounts of these encounters on the internet. Including one of them happened recently.

A man who met him at a restaurant approached him and told him that his 80-year-old mother was a longtime fan of his work, and that the actor reminded her of her late husband. In response, Reeves asked to call the woman. He decided to meet her in person and had a long talk with her that night.

Fashion magazines joke that Keanu Reeves has been wearing the same clothes for a quarter of a century. But that’s his thing. The actor is not the type of person who wants to dress in the best clothes when he leaves the house. He prefers ordinary T-shirts and jeans to elegant and expensive suits. By the way, this did not prevent him from getting into the list of the most stylish men. After all, style is more an internal state than appearance.

The actor demonstrated his talent as a tour guide in 2019 when a flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles made an emergency landing in the city of Bakersfield due to a malfunction. No one was injured in the incident, but passengers had to wait three hours to collect their luggage.

Reeves offered to take people on a tour, finding information about the city on the internet. Later, videos appeared on the Internet in which the actor plays with passengers, tells stories and even plays music.

There have been many internet memes made about Reeves, in which he is portrayed as a sad hero. This is due in part to his history. In 2001, his girlfriend died in a car accident. Since then, the Hollywood star has not been seen in a relationship with any other woman. The magazines said that only someone very unusual could melt the ice in his heart. But such a woman was finally found. And it’s artist Alexandra Grant.

Perhaps the audience was waiting for a different person. But there she was, a tall, gray-haired woman in her 40s. Alexandra doesn’t fit beauty standards. And she is proud of it. Reeves decided to ask her out ten years ago: they met in 2009, but the affair appeared in public only in 2019. According to friends, the actor and artist are in love with each other.

If you were asked to name Keanu Reeves’ best role as an actor, which would you choose? Tell us in the comments section.