Keanu Reeves Remains the Nicest Man in Hollywood

Some men are good, and others quite bad, but it is generally accepted that Keanu Reeves falls in the former camp. As many men in his famous orbit crumbled under the weight of MeToo, Reeves has yet to find himself in the center of a scandal. He’s perhaps one of the only good men in Hollywood today. Congratulations to this himbo king for enduring as a shining example for all the others out there who could stand to learn a lesson.

In a recent profile for Esquire, writer Ryan D’Agostino takes the long view on Reeves’ career ahead of the release of The Matrix Resurrections. The
interview attempts to plumb the depths of Reeves’ mind and to explain his enduring appeal, which has not wavered over the course of his long career.

Reeves has starred in 68 movies—an absolutely exhausting number for some, but for him, par for the course. He’s doing what he loves and he loves what he’s doing, so perhaps he’s found a way to embrace the dusty old adage that if you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. (While that likely applies on some level, I’d argue that Reeves also enjoys money, which is not rude or inherently evil, just a general statement.)

While there’s an impulse to poke holes in the narratives presented by famous men who generally have a reputation for being nice— to look for the rot in an otherwise unspoiled apple— Reeves is airtight. Please consider the evidence, in the form of a charming story recounted by his Speed and The Lake House co-star Sandra Bullock.

A year or so after Speed came out, Bullock and Keanu were hanging out, talking about whatever, and somehow the subject of Champagne and truffles came up, which is not really a subject at all, but Bullock said, offhand, that she had never had Champagne and truffles. A nothing comment. “Really?” Keanu said. “Nope, never had ’em,” Bullock said. The conversation wandered to other topics.

A few days later, Bullock was sitting in the living room of the little house she had bought—her first house—with a girlfriend. They were painting their nails. She heard an engine outside, which turned out to be Keanu’s motorcycle. He rang the doorbell, and Bullock opened the door to find him there with flowers, Champagne, and truffles. He said, “I just thought you might want to try Champagne and truffles, to see what it’s like.” He sat on the couch. Bullock poured some Champagne, and they opened the truffles. Keanu put his hands out, without a word, and Bullock painted his nails black, same as hers.

Though there are more examples of Reeves doing what he does best, which is to be nice and normal in spite of his enormous fame, something about this anecdote tickles the spirit. Of course Keanu Reeves rode his motorcycle to Sandra Bullock’s house bearing Champagne and truffles, so that she could taste the food of the wealthy. The silent manicure bit at the end makes no sense to me, personally, so I like to think that Reeves was just politely closing the loop—participating in a ritual that he had interrupted as a means of gratitude. The light in Keanu Reeves honors the light in Sandra Bullock, but also, maybe, in all of us, too.