Part – 01
Your father left you just as you were about to take your first steps. Your dyslexia made it necessary for you to drop out of high school. At the beginning of your youth, you lost your best friend forever. Following the death of your best buddy, you and your newlywed wife lost a child when she was stillborn. Your relationship came to an end as a result of the death’s devastating impact. Later, you lost yet another person you loved dearly when your ex-wife perished in a terrible car accident.
This is not a movie story, folks. Most of us may lose hope and give up on things. But this story does not, however, finish here. Considering that this is the tale of a man who transformed from a typical reel-life hero to a real-life hero.
This is the story of Keanu Charles Reeves.
Who is Keanu?
We could certainly produce a Keanu Reeves biopic that would take home a few Oscars. Undoubtedly, there is only one man who is capable of performing the role flawlessly.
The Early Life and Tragedies: Reeves was born on September 2, 1964, in Beirut, Lebanon. His early life was tragic. His mother is English, and his father is Chinese-Hawaiian. Keanu, then 3 years old, saw his father go. Keanu’s mother was by herself raising both him and his sister. She worked as a costume designer and a stripper and was the family’s main source of income.
They switched from Lebanon to Sydney and subsequently to New York. They eventually settled in Toronto. Keanu’s mother remarried three times throughout this period. He attended four different high schools, struggling with dyslexia. He attended four different high schools, struggling with dyslexia. Then, at the age of 17, he left school without a diploma.
When he was 23, his closest friend, River Phoenix (brother of Joaquin Phoenix), died of a drug overdose. In 1998, he met Jennifer Syme. After they started dating, Jennifer became pregnant with their daughter in 1999. Sadly, the baby died during eight months’ gestation.
As stated at the outset of the article, the death of their child shattered their relationship. Sadly, Jennifer passed away in a car accident 18 months after their separation.
Since then, Keanu has avoided serious relationships and having kids.
Road to Success
In the school theatre, he enjoyed acting in some of Shakespeare’s plays. Due to his prior acting skills and experience, he started his acting career professionally at the age of 15. He made an on-stage appearance in the Classic Romeo and Juliet in 1979.
He then made his television debut in the CBC sitcom Hanging In. But none of these went as planned.
At just 16, he drove 8 hours a day to New York to attend acting classes at HB Studios. In 1980, he got an opportunity to work on an advertisement for the famous carbonated beverage company Coca-Cola. He also continued to perform in short films and on stage.
After several minor roles in stage and television shows, he landed a supporting role in the 1986 Canadian film Youngblood. And then he packed his bags and headed to Hollywood. His performances in River’s Edge and the Oscar-nominated movie Dangerous Liaisons are what initially made him popular.
“When I was 17 or 18, I moved away. I moved out of my house at the age of 18, and at the age of 20, I travelled across Canada from Toronto to Los Angeles. As a teenager, I could take care of myself. I had some family when I arrived in the States, but I also experienced a lot of rejection,” he stated.
He continued to receive offers to work on more similar films. The ‘permanent record’ was notable among them. Keanu became an overnight star playing Ted Logan in the 1989 blockbuster Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure. Stormed the teen magazines. The sequel to Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure was released in 1991. The media began to describe him as an ‘Idealist teen’. Note that Britain’s Sky magazine had a full 15-page special feature on him.
Rise of the Acting Career
Keanu tried to focus on his career to forget the sadness of his personal life. He acted in the movie Little Buddha. In the 90s he worked with big producers like Bernardo Bertolucci. And because of his sincerity towards work, directors also liked to work with him.
He had several notable cinema appearances during the following period. He made his biggest career break by appearing in the action movie Speed. The enormous success of this 1994 film, in which he starred opposite the then-known star Sandra Bullock, established him as a big-budget action star.
Keanu subsequently moved on to more experimental jobs. He didn’t mind even playing a supporting role. He just noticed how important that character is to the story of the movie.
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Writer,
Dipta Biswas
Intern, Content Writing Department,
YSSE