“He’s a master”: Keanu Reeves names the best director he ever worked with
Appearing in upwards of 80 feature films and television shows and having worked with over 70 different directors, Keanu Reeves is certainly no stranger to different filmmaking approaches. Over the years, he’s worked with such greats as Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Wise and, most famously, the Wachowskis.
Throughout his career, Reeves has portrayed a wide range of characters on screen, with his most recent role as the ruthless yet dog-loving assassin John Wick catapulting him to cult status among action fans. His relentless dedication to combat and tactical training earned him widespread acclaim. However, it wasn’t his collaboration with director Chad Stahelski, nor his work with other notable directors, that he considers his best experience on set.
When asked in a past interview with HuffPost, there was no pause of consideration when tasked with picking his favourite director to work with. “We’re all the sum of our experiences… I’d say most of the directors I’ve worked with have been very collaborative, but my favourite was Bernardo Bertolucci,” he proclaimed.
Bertolucci directed the 1993 spiritual drama Little Buddha, in which Reeves plays Siddharta, more commonly known as the Buddha. Six years before The Matrix, which established Keanu as an ass-kicking spiritual guru, Bertolucci’s exploration of Western views on Tibetan Buddhism seems to have sparked Reeves’ obsession with the metaphysical and philosophical.
Before collaborating with Bertolucci, Reeves was best known for his portrayal of Ted in Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, his unexpectedly strong performance in My Own Private Idaho, and some less successful attempts to expand his range—most notably in Dracula. Of course, these weren’t exactly the most philosophically demanding roles, but Reeves claims to have been drawn to the philosophical side of martial arts from the “age of 10 or 11”. It was his experience in Little Buddha that left a lasting impression, exposing him to the deeply “human” aspects of Buddhism, such as understanding feelings and the concept of impermanence.
And it seems that Reeves’ experience was as spiritual as the film’s subject matter. When asked who inspired his own directorial debut, the movie Man of Tai-Chi, he said, “I’ve probably said this before, but he’s a master. The earth and the sky at the same time. Or rather a rainbow that joins the two because he’s a poet, a painter and an intellectual.”
Little Buddha served as Bertolucci’s third film to focus on Eastern religious concepts, though he was known for his fearless exploration of multiple genres. Reeves wanted to channel the essence of Bertolucci while directing, claiming the Italian auteur was collaborative and “directs a lot” as opposed to “leaving the reins loose”.
Regardless of the critical reception of Reeves’ The Man of Tai-Chi, it is clear that he achieved this collaborative directorial approach. Working closely with iconic martial arts choreographer Woo-Ping Yuen and the film’s martial arts star, Tiger Hu Chen, he created a film guided by all those involved.
Reeves is renowned for his rigorous approach to preparing for roles and his commitment to choreographing his own stunts. In hindsight, much of this dedication could be traced back to the influence of Bernardo Bertolucci, his filmmaking idol, whose brilliance may have shaped Reeves’ disciplined work ethic and artistic philosophy.
