Keanu`s career is a happy story in many ways, but that hasn't always been true for his personal life.
It is hard to believe that so many tragedies can lie on the shoulders of this truly genuine man.
How did he manage to survive all his difficulties while still staying so humble and kind to
everyone around him?
Keanu's challenges started right from his birth.
His father was largely a neglectful drug addict, who left when Keanu was just 3 years old.
They stayed in touch for a few years, but after the divorce and moving from city to
city, they lost contact.
By the time he was 7, Keanu and his siblings were living in Toronto with their mother.
It all had an impact on Keanu's school achievements.
He also had dyslexia, which made learning especially challenging for him.
Eventually, he left high school without graduating, though through sheer will, he is now an avid reader.
To get away from everyday troubles, Keanu found a hobby.
He used to head up the coast on his motorbike, enjoying the ocean breeze and soaking up the
amazing sunsets.
Keanu said that "It's the physical sensation of riding, the wind, the smell, the sights,
the connection to the machine, the living-in-nature," that he loves the most.
It helped him to get his head clear, though it lead to some serious injuries as well.
He once took a hairpin bend too fast and lay on the pavement for half an hour thinking
he was going to die.
The accident left a thick scar up his abdomen after his damaged spleen had to be removed.
Since then there have been other surgeries, fake teeth, veneers, and broken ribs.
But he continues to ride and is still very much in love with his motorcycles.
Reeves started acting professionally at 15, thanks to the experience he got from school theatre.
He did some scenes from Shakespeare and really enjoyed it.
By 16, he was driving eight hours to New York to attend acting classes at HB Studio.
It seems that all this self-motivation was spurred on by a disruptive home life, his
dad, and a desire to make something of himself.
The 1989 blockbuster Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure made Reeves a star.
Teen magazines went nuts for him.
For instance, In Britain, Sky magazine devoted 15 pages to him in various stages of undress!
After years of playing high school outcasts he proved his raw talent for action in Point
Break, playing a charismatic cop.
But those were not the roles Keanu sought.
He wanted something that will address social concerns.
In fact, Reeves turned down a rumored $5.5m film for a completely different gig.
Instead, he chose to play Hamlet at the Manitoba Theatre Centre for the standard equity fee
of less than $2,000 a week.
And he was absolutely happy about it, just because he got to play Hamlet.
Things were going quite well for Keanu, until horrible news came.
In 1993, his closest friend River Phoenix died of a drug overdose at the age of 23.
He was devastated, but he didn`t fall into depression.
He kept going, trying to shift focus on his career.
In the 90's, Reeves worked with heavy-weight directors such as Bertolucci and Ford Coppola.
Directors loved the way he committed himself to a role.
He was successful and falling for his new girlfriend, Jennifer Syme.
The two fell instantly in love and were after a year expecting a baby girl.
Sadly, after eight months, their child tragically came out as a stillborn.
They were devastated by her death and it eventually ended their relationship.
18 months later, Syme was driving alone in LA when she died in a terrible car accident.
Reeves, who was scheduled to begin shooting a Matrix sequel during that spring, sought
"peace and time" after falling on really hard times.
Even through those incredible tragedies, Reeves would push on.
Even more so, for The Matrix sequels, Reeves renegotiated his contract so the crew got
a share of his fee, a deal that cost him tens of millions - just to make sure that the special
effects team could continue as they needed!
After the Matrix, he has become a wealthy man, but the pain and loss has changed how
he thinks about money.
It feels like the world just kept testing his kindness...
Kim Reeves, his younger sister, was diagnosed with leukemia and after battling the disease
for nearly a decade, was finally getting into remission.
Keanu had “lovingly supported” his sister throughout her illness.
In fact, he is a frequent and generous contributor to all sorts of charitable causes and even
started a private charity foundation.
He seems to be the perfect guy with the kindest heart of all!
In 2010, Reeves was taking a break from some post-production work.
He sat on a park bench in New York and ate his sandwich with a pigeon at his feet and
a fed-up expression on his face.
A paparazzi photo became a meme.
The "Sad Keanu" picture was soon being edited in inventive and amusing ways.
But unlike other celebrity-related online fads, the whole thing seemed based on sincerity
and affection.
Though his sadness is understandable, we hope he is not feeling that dramatic all the time.
Now, 53 years old, Keanu's life has been filled with more tragedy than you would expect from
a movie star.
Despite each setback, he's kept pushing forward.
It's helped him develop himself into the awesome person that he is on and off the screen.
It's a lesson that we'll all likely learn.
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