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Keanu Reeves is recognized as one of Hollywood’s kindest and most considerate actors. And no doubt, he has numerous anecdotes that back this claim. With notable performances like Neo in The Matrix, John Wick in the self-tilted films, and Johnny Utah in Point Break, Reeves has been a Hollywood icon for years.
At 57 years old, Reeves has done most of his stunts across four installments of the John Wick series. The recent release of John Wick 4 suggests that the actor remains forever active and isn’t slowing down.
Keanu Reeves
But even though Reeves has done 90% of the stunts in the John Wick franchise, he always gives credit to the crew of stunt members. Notably, he even gifted a dozen stuntmen from The Matrix with Harley-Davidson motorcycles as a token of gratitude.
Keanu Reeves Assisted Charlize Theron in Atomic Blonde Training
Keanu Reeves as John Wick
Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron have starred opposite each other in the demonic thriller, The Devil’s Advocate. But there was an instance when filming Atomic Blonde, Theron trained in the same airport hangar where Reeves was preparing for John Wick: Chapter 2.
During his rehearsals for John Wick: Chapter 2, Reeves assisted in training Theron, who was getting ready for her part as Lorraine Broughton in Atomic Blonde — a top-level MI6 field agent.
Collaborating with John Wick‘s co-director David Leitch, Reeves, and Theron practiced together to prepare for their respective roles. Reeves guided Theron through various fighting techniques and advised on shaping for combat sequences.
Charlize Theron Crafted Fake Scenarios with Keanu Reeves to Motivate Herself During the Training
Charlize Theron and Keanu Reeves
To motivate herself to push the limits in her training, Theron used to vision scenarios where she could defeat the John Wick star. Theron admitted:
“In my head, I think I totally won the fight that we had in my brain.”
She admitted to Yahoo! that she sometimes also fantasized about defeating Reeves in a real fight.
“I would have stupid moments where I would think I could actually tackle him and pin him down,” she recalled. “He would just try to, in a very sweet way, entertain my complete stupidity and allow me to kind of pin him down.”
Having Theron and Reeves subtly spurring each other with mutual encouragement and friendly rivalry sounds smart.
Although the actor has extensive training in judo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, marksmanship, and car fu, he would’ve definitely exhausted by performing more than 90% in the movie. At that time, the Matrix actor was also battling the flu and running a fever of 104° degrees. And now it is said that he became the instructor for Charlize Theron, which is another baggage carried on his head.
But everyone knows that Reeves’ generous nature would never take this as a headload. And that’s what happened exactly. He assisted Theron, and it was all worth it because the film was a box-office hit, grossing $98 million worldwide against a budget of $30 million.
