Warner Bros.
Finally, someone agrees! I’ve been saying this for years about Keanu Reeves, and here’s the argument: find me an actor from his generation that has four action films as iconic as the ones he boasts: Point Break, Speed, The Matrix, and John Wick. Go ahead, I’m waiting…
Now, will any one say that Keanu Reeves is the greatest dramatic actor of his time? Of course not! But with four legitimate action classics under his belt, and with the John Wick franchise still going strong — John Wick 4 and John Wick 5 are set to release in the coming years — who knows where his legacy ultimately ends up?
If you’ve seen The Matrix: Resurrections, then you’ll know that one of the great marvels of the film is Reeves’ ability to execute action scenes at his age. Now 57-years-old, Reeves is still able to perform action sequences with the best of them, and that’s something that has to be considered when gauging his ultimate place in the history of action stars. Hell, by the time John Wick 5 hits theaters, Reeves very well could be 60 — 60! — years old.
It would appear as though the notion that Reeves is his generation’s greatest action star is finally catching on, as Jonathan Groff — the Hamilton and Frozen actor who features as Agent Smith in The Matrix: Resurrections — recently said as much during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
“He was there training and getting ready before all of us got there,” recalled Groff, who plays a new version of Hugo Weaving’s villain Agent Smith. “My first day in the training tent, Keanu was in his jiu-jitsu outfit doing kicks and punches. I mean, he really sets the bar for all of us in the training. When the fight was happening, I also really wanted to be able to be present and to be trading energy back and forth with Keanu as Neo. I didn’t want to be focusing on the moves. I wanted to know it so well so I could actually play it.”
“It was so exciting to be doing such extraordinary fight choreography with the greatest action star of our time and someone that’s so devoted to their craft,” he said of Reeves. “I really tried to take in every single moment of getting to be with Keanu and I learned so much from working with him. It’s an experience I’ll hold in my heart for the rest of my life.” [via The Hollywood Reporter]
What a truly interesting career Reeves has had: he’s now pushing 60, and yet he’s more famous and revered than ever before. Being the nicest dude in Hollywood also helps. Keep on crushing it, king.
The Matrix: Resurrections is currently playing in theaters and streaming on HBO Max.
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