Keanu Reeves

Chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World.

(October 1997) Ranked #23 in Empire magazines "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list.

(May 1993) Arrested in Los Angeles, California; charged with drunk driving.

Loves ballroom dancing.

He owns at least two Norton Commando motorcycles whose engines were available in both 750cc and 850cc capacities, the high-compression version being the Combat Commando.

Younger sister, Kim Reeves (born in Australia in 1966). Through his mother, he has a half-sister named Karina Miller (born 1976 in Toronto). Through his father, he has a half-sister named Emma Reeves (born 1980 in Hawaii).

Named after his uncle Henry Keanu Reeves. "Keanu" is a derivation of Reeves great-great-uncle Keaweaheulu, whose name means "the soft breeze raising" in Hawaiian.

Ex-stepson of film and stage director Paul Aaron.

Had job sharpening ice skates.

Was nicknamed "the wall" by high school hockey team De La Salle College "Oaklands".

Father left the family when Keanu was very young.

Was manager of a pasta shop in Toronto, Ontario.

His father was a geologist who served time in prison. He was paroled after serving two years of a ten-year sentence for selling heroin at Hilo Airport.

His mother, Patricia Taylor , was a costume designer for rock stars such as Alice Cooper.

His name means "cool breeze over the mountains" in Hawaiian.

Dropped out of high school when he was 17 to become an actor.

Hobbies include horseback riding and surfing (both inspired from movie roles).

Was MVP on his high school hockey team, where he was a goalie.

Keanu got his abdominal scar from a motorcycle wreck in Topanga Canyon. He was on a "demon ride" (no headlights at night) when he crashed into the side of a mountain. He was hospitalized for a week with broken ribs and a ruptured spleen. When the paramedics came to get him, an emergency medical technician trainee picked up one end of the stretcher... then dropped it by mistake! "It made me laugh, but I couldnt breathe!".

When trying out for the roles of Bill and Ted in Bill & Teds Excellent Adventure , each actor was paired up with another. Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter were paired up, Reeves trying out for the part of Bill while Winter tried out for the part of Ted. They were cast opposite what they auditioned for.

His first name, Keanu, is pronounced "keh-ah-noo".

(August 1995) Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#17).

In November 1999, the baby girl he was expecting with girlfriend Jennifer Syme was stillborn, just a few weeks shy of the actual delivery date. They had planned to name her Ava Archer Syme-Reeves.

(April 2, 2001) His estranged girlfriend Jennifer Syme was killed when her Jeep Cherokee careened onto the wrong side of a Los Angeles road near Highway 101 and smashed into three parked cars. The force of the crash flipped the car over and she was thrown through the windshield. She was killed instantly.

Maintains Canadian citizenship and passport.

Has appeared in three films whose title contains a US state: Feeling Minnesota , My Own Private Idaho and The Prince of Pennsylvania and his character in Point Break was named John Utah.

Was set to reprise his role as Jack Traven in the sequel to Speed - Speed 2: Cruise Control - but dropped out.

Took a 90% pay cut on his salary on The Replacements so Gene Hackman could be cast. Previously, he had deferred $2 million of his salary so that Al Pacino could be cast on The Devils Advocate .

Resides in the Hollywood Hills area, Los Angeles, California, and is said to maintain an apartment in Manhattan as well.

Learned over 200 martial arts moves for The Matrix Reloaded .

Played in the band Becky which also featured Robert Mailhouse , Paulie Kosta and Rebecca Lord .

Was originally offered the role of Private Chris Taylor in Platoon , which he turned down. The role went to Charlie Sheen.

Was originally cast as Chris Shiherlis in Heat but later backed out of the project. The role went to Val Kilmer.

He attended high school at North Toronto, where his drama teacher was Paul Robert.

Frequently plays men either strapped or sitting in a chair while some type of procedure is performed on him. All three Matrix films, Johnny Mnemonic , Feeling Minnesota , Dracula , Constantine , A Scanner Darkly , The Day the Earth Stood Still , John Wick .

He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on January 31, 2005.

Read the script of Constantine while filming The Matrix Revolutions .

His first theater work was with Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, Massachusetts in "The Tempest".

He learned to surf for his role in Point Break

Very good friends with his Bill & Ted co-star, Alex Winter and has remained in contact with him. Keanu has also contributed cameo appearances and helped with a number of Winters film projects.

His best friend is his younger sister Kim Reeves.

Has recently left the band Becky with former Dogstar bandmate Robert Mailhouse , due to scheduling conflicts.

Auditioned for the Etobicoke School of the Arts in Etobicoke, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; but was rejected.

Replaced Val Kilmer as the title role in Johnny Mnemonic when Kilmer left the project upon being offered the role of Bruce Wayne in Batman Forever . Ironically, Kilmer later replaced Reeves as Chris Siherlis in Heat .

His best friend was actor River Phoenix. He is also friends with Rivers brother Joaquin Phoenix.

His parents married in Hawaii and divorced in 1966. His mother later remarried Paul Aaron (divorced in 1971) and Robert Miller (between 1976 and 1980).

The character of Jimbo Jones on "The Simpsons" is based on his character from Bill & Teds Excellent Adventure .

Lent one of his basses (a yellow Fender) to be used in the music video, "100%", by Sonic Youth , to bassist Kim Gordon.

Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#28).

Has played a former quarterback from the Ohio State University in two films: Point Break and The Replacements .

Turned down the role of Racer X in Speed Racer , which eventually went to Matthew Fox.

Joel Schumacher considered him for the role of The Scarecrow (Jonathan Crane) in the fifth Batman movie had Schumacher gone on to direct Batman 5. The failure of Batman & Robin prevented that from happening.

Is an avid fan of Formula 1 and IndyCar racing.

Was good friends with the late Anthony Quinn. They starred together in A Walk in the Clouds .

Currently resides in Los Angeles, California.

Close friends with Speed co-star Sandra Bullock. He also was among the guests at her wedding to Jesse James .

Keanus father, who is an American from Hawaii, has English, Native Hawaiian, Portuguese, Scottish, and Chinese, ancestry, with distant Dutch roots. Keanus mother is English.

Has named Peter OToole as the actor who has influenced him the most.

Is dyslexic.

(August 4, 2001) Played baseball in the Dodgers Stadium, for the 43rd Hollywood Stars Celebrity Baseball Game. His team won 5 to 4. This was the first time Keanu played baseball.

Played ice hockey for the California Senior Hockey League.

When Reeves first arrived in Hollywood, his agent thought his first name was too exotic, so during the early days of his film career he is sometimes credited as K.C. Reeves, Norman Kreeves or Chuck Spadina.

Was raised in Beirut (since birth until six months), Sydney (until age 3), Upper West Side (Manhattan, New York, until age 6) and in Toronto (until age 21).

Could have been a professional ice hockey player for the Canadian League, could have tried out for the Windsor Spitfires Ontario Hockey League, but set his heart on acting, leaving hockey as a hobby.

Decided to become an actor at age 15 when he was doing Romeo and Juliet in 10th grade.

Was trained for four months in martial arts (kung-fu) for The Matrix .

Speaks French fluently.

(December 2008) Attended the premiere of The Day the Earth Stood Still in Tokyo, Japan.

(November 2008) Attended the 2008 Bambi Awards in Offenburg, Germany.

(April 2009) Attending the IndyCar Long Beach Grand Prix as a guest of honor.

(December 2008) Attended a press conference for The Day the Earth Stood Still in Mexico City, Mexico.

(February 2009) Attended the 59th Berlin International Film Festival in Germany.

(October 2012) Announced that he is teaming up with friend Gard Hollinger of L.A. County Choprods to launch the Arch Motorcycle Company.

(November 2008) Attended press conferences for The Day the Earth Stood Still in Paris, France and Madrid, Spain.

He starred in three films with actor Udo Kier : My Own Private Idaho , Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Johnny Mnemonic .

Stanley Kubrick , David Lean , Frank Capra and Martin Scorsese are some of his favorite filmmakers.

Is jokingly considered to be immortal due to striking resemblances to Vlad the Impaler and Paul Manet.

He was the visual inspiration for the original illustrations of superhero Green Lantern/Kyle Rayner (created in 1994). Reeves was 30 years old at the point.

Had a bathtub scene in two films with Rachel Weisz , where she sits in the tub with clothes on and he is outside the tub: Constantine and Chain Reaction .

Writes left-handed, but shoots a gun or performs other actions with his right hand. In The Matrix , he signs for the package with his left hand, but opens the package and holds the phone with his right hand.

[when asked if he had any fears] I used to have nightmares that they,would put "He played Ted" on my tombstone.

[1995, on his idea of happiness] Lying in bed with my lover, riding my,bike, sports, happy times with my friends, conversation, learning, the,earth, dirt, a beautiful repast with friends, family with wine and,glorious food and happy tidings and energy and zest and lust for life.

I like being in the desert, in nature, being in extraordinary spaces in,nature, high in a tree or in the dirt, hanging out with my family, my,sisters.

I love riding my bike through Los Angeles on the Pacific Coast Highway.

I also go to the Santa Monica Mountains. It is like losing myself, like,playing a musical instrument or any other pastime that takes away,regular cares and responsibilities.

The simple act of paying attention can take you a long way.

Falling in love and having a relationship are two different things.

Grief changes shape, but it never ends.

Kissing someone is pretty intimate, actually very intimate, and your heart always kind of skips a beat before you do that.