Did Keanu Reeves shave his head for The Matrix: Resurrections?
Introduction
As hard to believe as it may be, Keanu Reeves has been acting for more than three decades now, appearing in a number of hugely popular and hugely successful Hollywood blockbusters over the course of his illustrious career.
What’s even more remarkable about Keanu is the fact that he is arguably the nicest and most humble man in all of Hollywood.
In all honesty, he seems as if he’s one of the nicest people in the entire world.
Period.
Keanu Reeves began his acting career in 1984.
Since then, his career has snowballed, and he has found himself as one of the most in-demand actors in all of Hollywood.
With his latest movie John Wick 4, being hailed as a ‘masterpiece’ by critics, it’s easy to see why Keanu is so highly sought after by movie studios and producers alike.
In recent years, Keanu has been renowned for sporting his signature jet black near shoulder-length hair, with dark facial hair to match.
Those who saw him appear in 2021’s Matrix 4: The Matrix Resurrections may have seen him sporting a shaved head, at least partially, for some of the film.
So, did Keanu Reeves cut his hair for The Matrix, or was he simply sporting a bald cap? Let’s find out.
An Up-and-Coming Star
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Believe it or not, but Keanu Reeves has been starring in Hollywood blockbusters since the early 1990s.
Considering his newest John Wick movie is being considered one of the best movies in recent history, this shows just what a talented actor Keanu is.
Keanu Charles Reeves was born in Beirut, Lebanon, on the 2nd of September, 1964.
He was raised in Toronto, Canada, and has been working in the show business since 1984.
Keanu’s acting career began in 1984 when he debuted on an episode of a TV series called ‘Hangin In.’
In 1989 he appeared in Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, which is now considered a cult classic. This was his most successful movie so far, though plenty more were to come.
In 1991 his career really took off, when he appeared in Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey, followed by Point Break. Point Break is another cult classic, and starred Keanu alongside the late, great Patrick Swayze and Gary Busey.
He played a distinctly young-looking undercover FBI agent tasked with infiltrating a gang of surfing bank robbers. Yes, it really is as cool as it sounds.
Arguably his biggest role, however, came in 1994 in the movie Speed, when he played a cop named Jack Travis, who finds himself stuck on a bus rigged with explosives set to detonate if the bus’s speed drops below 50mph.
Starring alongside Sandra Bullock and the late Dennis Hopper, the movie was a financial and critical success. It was a typical early 90s action popcorn flick, and audiences loved it, with critics praising Keanu’s work.
Hits and Misses
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During the 90s, many believed that Keanu’s career had peaked following the likes of Point Break and Speed, especially considering he appeared in a number of box office flops.
In 1995, for example, he appeared in the cyberpunk sci-fi movie Johnny Mnemonic.
The movie works on the premise of a man with a cybernetic brain implant who holds a data package being hunted by the Yakuza. The movie was a flop financially and critically.
Another sci-fi movie that attracted Reeves was Chain Reaction, which also featured Morgan Freeman.
This, too, lost money and was panned by critics. By this point, even after appearing alongside Al Pacino in The Devil’s Advocate, and getting decent reviews, many thought Keanu would fade away into obscurity.
In 1999, though, everything changed when the Wachowski siblings cast him as Thomas Anderson in a movie called The Matrix.
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The Matrix
Ellen Hollman, Keanu Reeves, and Stephen Dunlevy attend “The Matrix Resurrections” Red Carpet U.S. Premiere Screening – December 18, 2021 – @Getty
Now, when you think of Keanu Reeves, generally, there are two roles that spring to mind.
The first is John Wick, which we’ll look at another time, and the second is Neo.
In 1999, Keanu appeared as Thomas Anderson/Neo in the sci-fi classic The Matrix.
Reeves played a computer programmer, Thomas Anderson, who uses the online screenname Neo.
Neo discovers that life is not real and that human beings are trapped in an artificial world ruled by machines that use human beings as batteries.
Neo is discovered to be humanity’s last hope and the ‘chosen one.’
Neo must accept his entire life has been a lie and harness his abilities to help humanity in its battle against the machines.
Starring alongside Hugo Weaving, Laurence Fishbourne, and Carrie-Ann Moss, Keanu delighted audiences and critics alike, with many praising the writing, the acting, the story, the choreography, and the soundtrack.
To this day, the first Matrix movie is considered one of the best sci-fi blockbusters ever made.
The movie spawned three sequels: The Matrix: Reloaded, The Matrix: Revolutions, and The Matrix: Resurrections.
The three sequels were mostly criticized and could not live up to the original.
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Keanu Reeves is seen entering his hotel on April 23, 2021 in Berlin, Germany – @Getty
Did Keanu Reeves shave his hair for The Matrix Resurrections?
To prepare for his role as Neo, Keanu undertook martial arts training and firearms training. He also shaved his head for a portion of the first film. In 2021, however, Keanu again sported a shaved head for the fourth Matrix movie, although his long black hair is synonymous with his role as John Wick.
For some of the movie, his hair was long, yet in other portions where he enters the ‘real world,’ he was forced to shave his head.
Despite some saying he wore a bald cap, photos of Keanu in Berlin while filming the movie, emerged, which showed him sporting a buzzcut.
While not shaved completely bald, his head was shaved very short, and yes, those images were genuine.
Because of the delays in filming due to recent events, the movie was released in late 2021, and by the time Keanu attended the premier, his signature long, black, John Wick-esque locks were back.
So, did Keanu Reeves cut his hair for The Matrix?
Yes, he did, and he grew it back as soon as filming had been completed.
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Lee Parry is a writer and blogger originally from Manchester, UK, and he has a B.A. in Modern Languages from Manchester Metropolitan University. Parry occasionally teaches English and spends most of his free time reading.