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Keanu Reeves had one of his best cameo appearances in the 2016 movieKeanu.For anyone wondering if the movie’s based on him in any way, it’s not the case. It is an action comedy flick centering around two cousins desperately trying to retrieve their stolen cat. Despite not being based on Reeve directly, the kitten by his name in the movie was given his voice in a particular scene.
Reportedly, the movie didn’t have any special voice cameo by Keanu Reeves at first. It was implemented very late after theMatrixactor approached the makers himself. However, he had a major concern before agreeing to the special appearance. The actor didn’t want the movie or the role to be a mockery.
Also Read:Keanu Reeves Had the Perfect Reply For Haters Who Couldn’t Decide If He Was a “Good Bad Actor” or a “Bad Good Actor”
What was Keanu Reeves’ concern regarding the 2016 Jordan Peele movie?
Jordan Peel and Keegan-Michael Key were highly popular for their sketch seriesKey & Peele.The fans were quite excited when they finally received a movie after working together for five seasons. But one of the main issues that arose initially was its similarity withJohn Wick,or more precisely, it was looking like a parody of it.
But the director Peter Atencio repeatedly assured that it was not the case and the two films were quite distinct. He said to theLos Angeles Timesthat the initial similarities with the action film series discouraged them as he didn’t want to make a parody.
“We were like, ‘Should we? Is this a good idea?’ When ‘John Wick’ came out, we were kind of like, ‘Oh, my God. This is crazy.’ There’s a movie that has a very similar process that stars Keanu. In a way, that almost kind of deterred us. We didn’t want to see like we we were making a ‘John Wick’ parody. But the studio kept asking, “Can we get Keanu? Can we get Keanu?”
Despite joining the movie after a series of dramas regarding the casting,Keanu Reevesalso had a major concern regarding it. He didn’t want the movie by his name to be a cheap mockery of him in the end. Atencio added:
“He wanted to talk to me before he agreed to make sure that wasn’t the case. So I told him about the movie and talked him through the story. His personality has just transcended life, in a lot of ways.”
Finally, the makers were successful in convincing theSpeedstar about their intentions. Director Peter Atencio incorporated a dream sequence where we can hear Reeves voicing the kitten. The voice cameo also helped the actor maintain his work schedule onJohn Wick 2.
Also Read:Keanu Reeves Found a Fan in James Bond Star Daniel Craig’s Oscar-Winning Wife Who Desperately Wanted To Be Kissed ByConstantineActor
Casting Keanu Reeves inKeanuwasn’t easy
It is worth noting that casting Keanu Reeves in the voice cameo wasn’t an easy task for the makers. The actor’s representatives denied the movie in the very first place-“Yeah, they politely declined. Who knows if he ever even heard about the offer.”
Ultimately the hard work paid off when the trailer was released and it reached Reeves anyway through his sister. The trailer looked very intriguing to the actor and he himself approached the makers for any kind of help that was needed. While sharing the details from the production of the movie, director Peter Atencio added:
“But then we got a call after the trailer came out — apparently, his sister showed him the trailer and said, ‘Hey, you gotta see this. You’re gonna love this!’ He flipped out and got in touch with us directly to say ‘If there’s anything I can do, let’s make this work.'”
Also Read:Chad Stahelski Claims Keanu Reeves Falling Down 200 Stairs inJohn Wick 4Was Peak Comedy Due To An Incredibly Clever Plot Device
Another challenge was that Keanu Reeves was busy with hisJohn Wick 2in Italy so the team thought of an interesting last-minute special voice appearance and went to Rome. It was also reported that the studio wanted the scene to be filled with references to his old movies. But they were sensible enough to not overdo that.
Keanucan be rented on Apple TV+.
Source:Los Angeles Times
Subham Mandal
Senior Writer
Articles Published :1461
Subham Mandal is currently working as a content writer for FandomWire with an ardent interest in the world of pop culture. He has written more than 1000 articles on different spheres of modern pop culture and is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. He’s also an experienced student journalist having demonstrated work experience with the Times of India. He aspires to be a column writer in the future.
