Keanu Reeves
- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Keanu Charles Reeves, whose first name means "cool breeze over the mountains" in Hawaiian, was born September 2, 1964 in Beirut, Lebanon. He is the son ofPatric Reeves,a showgirl and costume designer, and Samuel Nowlin Reeves, a geologist. Keanu's father was born in Hawaii, of Native Hawaiian and Chinese ancestry while Keanu's mother is originally from Essex England. After his parents' marriage dissolved, Keanu moved with his mother and younger sister,Kim Reeves,to New York City, then Toronto. Stepfather #1 wasPaul Aaron,a stage and film director - he and Patricia divorced within a year, after which she went on to marry (and divorce) rock promoter Robert Miller. Reeves never reconnected with his biological father. In high school, Reeves was lukewarm toward academics but took a keen interest in ice hockey (as team goalie, he earned the nickname "The Wall" ) and drama. He eventually dropped out of school to pursue an acting career.
After a few stage gigs and a handful of made-for-TV movies, he scored a supporting role in theRob Lowehockey flickYoungblood (1986),which was filmed in Canada. Shortly after the production wrapped, Reeves packed his bags and headed for Hollywood. Reeves popped up on critics' radar with his performance in the dark adolescent drama,River's Edge (1986),and landed a supporting role in the Oscar-nominatedDangerous Liaisons (1988)with directorStephen Frears.
His first popular success was the role of totally rad dude Ted "Theodore" Logan inBill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989).The wacky time-travel movie became something of a cultural phenomenon, and audiences would forever confuse Reeves's real-life persona with that of his doofy on-screen counterpart. He then joined the casts ofRon Howard's comedy,Parenthood (1989)andLawrence Kasdan'sI Love You to Death (1990).
Over the next few years, Reeves tried to shake the Ted stigma with a series of highbrow projects. He played a slumming rich boy oppositeRiver Phoenix's narcoleptic male hustler inMy Own Private Idaho (1991),an unlucky lawyer who stumbles into the vampire's lair inDracula (1992),and Shakespearean party-pooper Don John inMuch Ado About Nothing (1993).
In 1994, the understated actor became a big-budget action star with the release ofSpeed (1994).Its success heralded an era of five years in which Reeves would alternate between small films, likeFeeling Minnesota (1996)andThe Last Time I Committed Suicide (1997),and big films likeA Walk in the Clouds (1995)andThe Devil's Advocate (1997).(There were a couple misfires, too: Johnny Mnemonic (1995)andChain Reaction (1996).) After all this, Reeves did the unthinkable and passed on the Speed sequel, but he struck box-office gold again a few years later with the Wachowski siblings' cyberadventure,The Matrix (1999).
Now a bonafide box-office star, Keanu would appear in a string of smaller films -- among themThe Replacements (2000),The Watcher (2000),The Gift (2000),Sweet November (2001),andHard Ball (2001)- beforeThe Matrix Reloaded (2003)andThe Matrix Revolutions (2003)were both released in 2003.
Since the end of The Matrix trilogy, Keanu has divided his time between mainstream and indie fare, landing hits withSomething's Gotta Give (2003),The Lake House (2006),andStreet Kings (2008).He's kept Matrix fans satiated with films such asConstantine (2005),A Scanner Darkly (2006),andThe Day the Earth Stood Still (2008).And he's waded back into art-house territory withEllie Parker (2005),Thumbsucker (2005),The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009),andHenry's Crime (2010).
Most recently, as post-production on the samurai epic47 Ronin (2013)waged on, Keanu appeared in front of the camera inSide by Side (2012),a documentary on celluloid and digital filmmaking, which he also produced. He also directed another Asian-influenced project,Man of Tai Chi (2013).
In 2014, Keanu played the title role in the action revenge filmJohn Wick (2014),which became popular with critics and audiences alike. He reprised the role inJohn Wick: Chapter 2 (2017),taking the now-iconic character to a better opening weekend and even more enthusiastic reviews than the first go-around.
After a few stage gigs and a handful of made-for-TV movies, he scored a supporting role in theRob Lowehockey flickYoungblood (1986),which was filmed in Canada. Shortly after the production wrapped, Reeves packed his bags and headed for Hollywood. Reeves popped up on critics' radar with his performance in the dark adolescent drama,River's Edge (1986),and landed a supporting role in the Oscar-nominatedDangerous Liaisons (1988)with directorStephen Frears.
His first popular success was the role of totally rad dude Ted "Theodore" Logan inBill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989).The wacky time-travel movie became something of a cultural phenomenon, and audiences would forever confuse Reeves's real-life persona with that of his doofy on-screen counterpart. He then joined the casts ofRon Howard's comedy,Parenthood (1989)andLawrence Kasdan'sI Love You to Death (1990).
Over the next few years, Reeves tried to shake the Ted stigma with a series of highbrow projects. He played a slumming rich boy oppositeRiver Phoenix's narcoleptic male hustler inMy Own Private Idaho (1991),an unlucky lawyer who stumbles into the vampire's lair inDracula (1992),and Shakespearean party-pooper Don John inMuch Ado About Nothing (1993).
In 1994, the understated actor became a big-budget action star with the release ofSpeed (1994).Its success heralded an era of five years in which Reeves would alternate between small films, likeFeeling Minnesota (1996)andThe Last Time I Committed Suicide (1997),and big films likeA Walk in the Clouds (1995)andThe Devil's Advocate (1997).(There were a couple misfires, too: Johnny Mnemonic (1995)andChain Reaction (1996).) After all this, Reeves did the unthinkable and passed on the Speed sequel, but he struck box-office gold again a few years later with the Wachowski siblings' cyberadventure,The Matrix (1999).
Now a bonafide box-office star, Keanu would appear in a string of smaller films -- among themThe Replacements (2000),The Watcher (2000),The Gift (2000),Sweet November (2001),andHard Ball (2001)- beforeThe Matrix Reloaded (2003)andThe Matrix Revolutions (2003)were both released in 2003.
Since the end of The Matrix trilogy, Keanu has divided his time between mainstream and indie fare, landing hits withSomething's Gotta Give (2003),The Lake House (2006),andStreet Kings (2008).He's kept Matrix fans satiated with films such asConstantine (2005),A Scanner Darkly (2006),andThe Day the Earth Stood Still (2008).And he's waded back into art-house territory withEllie Parker (2005),Thumbsucker (2005),The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009),andHenry's Crime (2010).
Most recently, as post-production on the samurai epic47 Ronin (2013)waged on, Keanu appeared in front of the camera inSide by Side (2012),a documentary on celluloid and digital filmmaking, which he also produced. He also directed another Asian-influenced project,Man of Tai Chi (2013).
In 2014, Keanu played the title role in the action revenge filmJohn Wick (2014),which became popular with critics and audiences alike. He reprised the role inJohn Wick: Chapter 2 (2017),taking the now-iconic character to a better opening weekend and even more enthusiastic reviews than the first go-around.
