One of the most well-known and adored Hollywood stars, Canadian actor Keanu Reeves made his feature film debut in the sports drama Youngblood and our love for him has only grown since.
Reeves has acted in a wide variety of films, from lighthearted comedies like Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure to contemporary action classics like the John Wick series. The Matrix actor has done it all. Well, to be honest, almost. The actor has had a few standout instances of roles he wasn’t cast in over his career, either because he was passed up for them or because he declined them. One of the roles was that of Dr. Manhattan in Zack Snyder’s Watchmen. Reeves reportedly was up to play the part in the superhero movie but it just “didn’t work out”.
Keanu Reeves almost starred as Dr. Manhattan in Zack Snyder’s Watchmen
Keanu Reeves nearly took on another important role in the late 2000s—that of Dr. Manhattan in Watchmen. Billy Crudup, though, ended up playing that all-powerful character but only a few people are aware that Reeves initially applied for the role. But the entire gig fell through. He actually spoke about this with MTV in the past, claiming that it “just didn’t work out”
This resulted most likely from The Day The Earth Stood Still production dates that coincided with this one. Reeves playing Dr. Manhattan would undoubtedly have been a revelation, one can only imagine. The intellectual bent and general lack of emotional connection of Manhattan do match what Reeves has done with some of his other characters. It’s also conceivable that his participation would have increased the movie’s box office.
One might wonder what kind of effects the opportunity to play a blue, glowing, nearly naked CGI character might have had on Reeves’s career in the industry. Who knows, maybe he would have been able to work around Zack Snyder and eventually land a role in DCEU.
Keanu Reeve’s John Wick Franchise might not come to an end
John Wick: Chapter 4 was a fantastic action movie this year which ended up making $432 million. at the box office, not bad for a series that nearly debuted as a direct-to-video release.
Because of its popularity, the movie’s production company, Lionsgate, declared that it will be developing a fifth installment in the series. Joe Drake, the head of Lionsgate’s motion picture department, confirmed it on the company’s quarterly earnings call, saying
“you can rely on a regular cadence of John Wick.”
Lionsgate has already indicated a desire to expand the John Wick universe. In 2024, Ana de Armas will feature in the spinoff Ballerina, which is situated in the same universe. This autumn, The Continental, a prequel series from Peacock will debut, following Winston and Charon in the 1970s.
Source: ScreenRant
