Thursday, November 19

• Keanu Reeves Gets a Director for His Samurai Movie, 47 Ronin

  Take the movie 300, mix in samurais and Keanu Reeves, and that's basically 47 Ronin, Universal's actioner about the fact-based story of a band of samurais that join together to avenge their master's death in 18th-century Japan.

  Variety reports that Universal is close to bringing newcomer Carl Eric Rinsch on board to direct. Before Hollywood came knocking, Rinsch directed commercials, and was once set to direct the prequel to Alien — until Ridley Scott decided to return. Clearly Universal thinks highly of Rinsch to give him such an effects-heavy, high-budget movie for his debut.

  Chris Morgan (Wanted) wrote the 47 Ronin script, and especially tailored it so that Reeves, who is half-Asian, could play one of the samurai swordsman. Does that mean that after Reeves wins a fight, he does a celebratory air-guitar jam?

  
  

  Posted 11/19/2009 by Ryan

  Related: Keanu Reeves | 47 Ronin

Wednesday, September 23

• Cowboy Bebop Script in Need of a Rewrite

  For the uninitiated, Cowboy Bebop is a popular Japanese anime series that told the story of a group of rag-tag bounty hunters or "cowboys" traveling through the cosmos in their ship, the Bebop. The 26-episode series, which was popular in Japan and in the United States, spawned a feature film that was released worldwide.

  When it was announced that a live-action Cowboy Bebop movie adaptation was in the works, the overall reaction of fans was positive, especially when Keanu Reeves was attached to play Spike, the lead character. Since then, however, there has been little to no news. According to Reeves, who spoke with MTV while promoting The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, the delay is due, at least in part, to the need to retool the screenplay.

  There's a draft of the script, but the writer did such a great job [that] in order to make the movie, you would need half a billion dollars. The studio kind of just went, "This movie is fantastic and it would cost half a billion dollars," so he's doing a rewrite.

  When asked what other characters from the animated series might be appearing in the film, Reeves simply said, "Everyone is there."

  
  
  Next Showing: The Private Lives of Pippa Lee opens in the U.S. November 27

  Posted 09/23/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Keanu Reeves | The Private Lives of Pippa Lee

Saturday, September 5

• Keanu Reeves Orchestrates Henry's Crime

  Actor Keanu Reeves is about to don another Hollywood hat, that of movie producer. According to Variety, Reeves' production house, Company Films, plans to begin filming its first picture, Henry's Crime, in November, with Reeves himself in the leading role.

  Described as a "Capraesque" romantic comedy, Henry's Crime tells the story of an innocent man (Reeves) falsely accused of robbing a bank in Buffalo, New York. Malcolm Venville (44 Inch Chest) directs from a script by Sacha Gervasi (The Terminal).

  
  
  Next Showing: Henry's Crime is scheduled for a 2010 release

  Posted 09/05/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Keanu Reeves

Friday, April 24

• Update on Constantine 2

  When Constantine opened in 2005 to a worldwide box office of $230 million, it seemed like the start of a franchise for the comic book adaptation. In 2006, producer Lauren Shuler Donner spoke positively about a sequel, saying she and a "team of writers" were "really going to go for it" on a sequel that would feature a "hard" R-rating, Keanu Reeves, and a story "outside of America." Then things went quiet.

  In 2007, director Francis Lawrence suggested the sequel might actually be a prequel. "I like origin stories," he told ShockTilYouDrop. Then, once again, news of a sequel ceased.

  Now it looks like a sequel may be on its way. Last year, Reeves told MoviesOnline he "wouldn't mind doing another Constantine" and he may get his wish. Recently, Shuler Donner told SciFiWire that a sequel "looks very good," and that she is "looking for a writer."

  Wait, what happened to the "team?" Let's hope they haven't taken those sequel ideas with them. Fans of the comic would likely prefer a return to Constantine's English roots. Even if Reeves can't pull off the accent.

  
  

  Posted 04/24/2009 by Ryan

  Related: Keanu Reeves | Lauren Shuler Donner | Francis Lawrence | Constantine

Friday, December 12

• The Day the Earth Stood Still Review and Interviews

  Why remake a sci-fi classic like The Day the Earth Stood Still? That's what Keanu Reeves initially asked: "I came to the director, Scott Derrickson, like why do you want to do this? Why remake a classic? And he said, 'Yes, it is a classic, but I think we can take that premise, that story, and retell it today.'"

  Reeves was sold on the "contrast of the plot." But will fans be? See our review of The Day the Earth Stood Still. And if you're looking for additional details about this action-packed remake, see our interview with Keanu Reeves and interview with Jennifer Connelly.

  
  
  

  The Day The Earth Stood Still - Trailer

  Keanu Reeves Stars - Now in Theaters

  Posted 12/12/2008 by reelz

  Related: Jennifer Connelly | Keanu Reeves | Scott Derrickson | The Day the Earth Stood Still | The Day the Earth Stood Still

• A Field Guide to the Facial Expressions of Keanu Reeves

  Keanu Reeves has built his career as a science fiction avatar on what the LA Times recently referred to as his "cosmic blankness," a facial minimalism that certainly helped make him alien enough for his role as Klaatu in The Day the Earth Stood Still. But the folks over at New York Magazine's Vulture Blog have assembled a rejoinder to all the jokes and jibes about his lack of range in their illustrated field guide to the facial expressions of Keanu Reeves. Their "patented Kean-u-meter" uncovers a range of elasticity from zero (The Matrix Revolutions) to ten (Bram Stoker's Dracula). As Klaatu, he racks up a one for his display of "alienation."

  
  

  Posted 12/12/2008 by reelz

  Related: Keanu Reeves | The Day the Earth Stood Still

Tuesday, December 9

• Keanu Reeves Signs Up for Sword Saga

  Turns out, Tom Cruise is not the last samurai, after all. Keanu Reeves will play the lead in 47 Ronin, which Variety describes as "an epic period film for Universal Pictures based on the true tale of a band of samurai swordsmen who avenged the death of their master in 18th century Japan." The movie will reportedly mix Lord of the Rings-style fantasy with Gladiator-like gore…and, we're betting, lots of shots of Reeves looking eerily calm. After the lethal yelling and general World Wrestling Entertainment vibe Cruise brought to the samurai world, we're looking forward to Keanu's undoubtedly more Zen-like approach!

  
  

  Posted 12/09/2008 by reelz

  Related: Keanu Reeves | Tom Cruise | The Last Samurai

Monday, December 8

• The Science Behind The Day the Earth Stood Still

  
  Keanu Reeves and Scott Derrickson
  on set.

  With a senior astronomer at the SETI institute as resident science advisor to The Day the Earth Stood Still, the goal was to make this archetypal tale of aliens come to Earth at least modestly true to science, something not always much of a priority in sci-fi flicks. As the only real scientist on set, Seth Shostak was challenged to keep his fictional counterparts, alien and otherwise, talking -- and chalking -- as plausibly as possible. One key scene involves dueling equations between the alien Klaatu (Keanu Reeves) and Earth scientist Professor Barnhardt (John Cleese). To keep it real, Shostak had the actors trace out some equations from General Relativity. But when it came to the Greek letters, Reeves proved a bit slow on the draw. No problem though. As director Scott Derrickson pointed out, "Hey, Seth, he's an alien!"

  
  

  Posted 12/08/2008 by reelz

  Related: John Cleese | Keanu Reeves | Scott Derrickson | The Day the Earth Stood Still

Wednesday, November 26

• Gort Pummels Fox Sports Robot; NFL Fans Rejoice

  The only aspect of Fox Sports' NFL coverage more annoying than Terry Bradshaw is Cleatus, the animated robot designed to keep viewers entertained while the network rattles off its list of sponsors each Sunday. Perhaps sensing football fans' contempt for the character, Fox has unveiled a new promotional clip for Keanu Reeves' upcoming remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still, in which the alien robot Gort hands Cleatus a thorough beatdown on the gridiron.

  For those eternal optimists who think this might spell the end for the Fox NFL Sunday mascot, don't count on it. Cleatus has proven more durable than Brett Favre, surviving past drubbings from both Iron Man and the Terminator.
  

  Now, if only Gort can do something about Michael Strahan...

  
  
  Next Showing: The Day the Earth Stood Still opens Friday, December 12, 2008
  

  The Day the Earth Stood Still - Clip

  Gort faces Cleatus on the gridiron

  Posted 11/26/2008 by reelz

  Related: Keanu Reeves | The Day the Earth Stood Still

Tuesday, November 18

• Gort Grows 20 Feet Taller in Keanu Reeves' The Day the Earth Stood Still

  How do you adapt classic 1951 sci-fi for a 2008 audience?

  
  New Gort

  On a visit to the set of The Day the Earth Stood Still, ComingSoon.net got treated to a variety of answers. Of course, the filmmakers couldn't mess too much with the trinity of the ship, Klaatu, and Gort. But everything got radically re-imagined. Flying saucers and robots wouldn't pack quite the menace they did for audiences back in the day, and risk seeming old fashioned or just plain funny. And the 2008 audience has been to space a lot over the last half century. The challenge in a nutshell, notes production designer David Brisbin, is "How do you get people in 2008 to say, Oh, s***?"

  So the design team talks in detail about the evolution of the film's iconic elements, about how saucers make way for orbs, and about how Gort ended up standing 25 to 30 feet tall.

  
  
  Next Showing: The Day the Earth Stood Still opens December 12

  Posted 11/18/2008 by reelz

  Related: Keanu Reeves | The Day the Earth Stood Still

Thursday, April 10

• Street Kings Review

  Keanu Reeves and Forest Whitaker headline this gritty cop drama set amidst a world of corruption and urban street justice.

  Does the Training Day-esque Street Kings deliver the goods? Read our full Street Kings review to find out.

  
  

  Posted 04/10/2008 by reelz

  Related: Forest Whitaker | Keanu Reeves | Street Kings

Monday, August 27

• We knew it: Keanu Reeves is an alien

  Keanu Reeves has signed to star in a remake of the 1951 sci-fi hit, The Day the Earth Stood Still. Reeves will take the part of Klaatu, a "humanoid alien" who comes to Earth to warn of impending destruction if we can't all just get along.

  Scott Derrickson (The Exorcisim of Emily Rose) will direct.

  Source: Variety.

  
  

  Posted 08/27/2007 by reelz

  Related: Keanu Reeves | The Day the Earth Stood Still

Wednesday, May 16

• Whoa! Point Break sequel in the works

  Looks like the legions of cinephiles clamoring for a sequel to the Keanu Reeves/Patrick Swayze surfer crime thriller Point Break will finally get their wish. Variety reports that Point Break co-writer Peter Iliff will write and direct Point Break 2.

  The long-awaited follow-up, set 20 years after the events depicted in the first film, will chronicle the efforts of a a surfer/Navy SEAL to track down a criminal gang in Southeast Asia.

  According to Variety, producers are searching for "a young male action star at the same stage in his career as Keanu was."

  Good luck. I don't envy the unfortunate casting director faced with the herculean task of finding an actor able to match Reeves's legendary depth and range.

  Maybe DiCaprio is available.

  
  

  Posted 05/16/2007 by reelz

  Related: Keanu Reeves | Patrick Swayze | Point Break

Thursday, March 15

• Starwatching

  As part of my job, I get to interview celebrities. It's a dirty job, all right, but someone's got to do it. But what I found most shocking was when I started seeing them elsewhere.

  So who have I seen so far?

  Morgan Freeman in the elevator of the Four Seasons, preparing to golf.

  Keanu Reeves waiting for the valet to bring his car at the Four Seasons. I used to stage manage for his sister in college, but I resisted the urge to tell him to tell her I said hello.

  My husband saw Jake Gyllenhaal in his car in my office parking lot. And he saw Giovanni Ribisi getting coffee in Larchmont Village and Ryan Gosling walking downtown.

  Kari Wuhrer with her husband and two VERY cute kids at table next to us at a restaurant in Larchmont. Remember her from Remote Control?

  Alex Kingston (aka Dr. Elizabeth Corday from ER) having Valentine's Day dinner at the same hip restaurant as me.

  Bradley Cooper (Alias) and Jennifer Esposito (Crash) taking in a show at the awesome DeafWest theater in Noho.

  Katherine Helmond(Mona from Who's the Boss) at Suzan Lori-Parks' 365 festival.

   

  
  

  
  

  Posted 03/15/2007 by reelz

  Related: Jake Gyllenhaal | Keanu Reeves | Morgan Freeman | Ryan Gosling