Upcoming Keanu Reeves Movies: What's Next For The John Wick Star?
Keanu Reeves is a massive action hero, with starring turns in Speed, The Matrix, and of course John Wick over the course of the last three decades. Ever since John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum arrived in theaters back in 2019, Reeves fans have been hungry for more. Unfortunately, John Wick: Chapter 4 is still slated for a distant 2022 release date. What — other than a John Wick rollercoaster — is there to look forward to?
Since the third John Wick, Reeves has kept enormously busy. The actor had hilarious cameos in Always Be My Maybe (in which he played a very chill version of himself) and Toy Story 4. Both Reeves and Alex Winter finally got to return to the time travel franchise that made them household names with Bill & Ted Face the Music. And the very wise head of Keanu Reeves appeared in The Spongebob Movie: Sponge on the Run.
What's next for Keanu Reeves? Well, we know he'll feature in the upcoming video game Cyberpunk 2077 as a character named Johnny Silverhand, and we also know Reeves has also been working with Boom! Studios on a comic book, BRZRKR, about an immortal who is ready to die.
As for upcoming movies, there are a few big projects every Keanu Reeves fan should be aware of, including some franchises you will certainly find familiar.
Keanu Reeves as a NASCAR racer seeking redemption
Keanu Reeves is a part of many successful franchises, but one of the nice things about being truly successful is that you have the freedom to take on almost any project you want. And while most of the box office landscape is dominated by comic book adaptations and sci-fi action adventures, one of Reeves' upcoming projects is nothing of the sort.
Lionsgate (also responsible for the John Wick movies) is producing Rally Car, in which Reeves plays a fictional NASCAR driver. The film will be directed by Olivier Megaton, whose past work includes Transporter 3 with Jason Statham and Taken 2 with Liam Neeson. The story is written by John Wick executive producer Stephen Hamel.
In addition to starring, Reeves will act as producer on Rally Car. All we know so far about the picture is that it focuses on an American NASCAR driver who has to rebuild his career by entering international rally car races. Reeves' character will wind up racing (and winning) across China by learning to play as a member of a team. He'll be joined by a young Chinese woman who longs to be a driver herself. Having been first announced way back in 2017, there's currently no set release date for Rally Car.
Keanu Reeves gets close to Marvel super-herodom
Keanu Reeves has never been a superhero in a Marvel or DC movie, and people have taken notice. At one point, Reeves admitted he wished he'd had the chance to play Wolverine, and people got so excited (even though it will likely never happen) that it didn't take long for fanart of Reeves as Logan to hit the internet.
Fortunately for those hoping to see Reeves as a superhero, there is a project which might fit the bill. Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame directors Joe and Anthony Russo have a project they're producing that's been in the ether since around March 2018. According to Deadline, Past Midnight is a film about a vigilante superhero which has reportedly been picked up by Netflix, with video game writer TJ Fixman set as scribe and The Mandalorian director Rick Famuyiwa in the director's chair.
The only hiccup is that Past Midnight hasn't moved very far in pre-production. Back in November 2019, Joe Russo told Inverse that the project was "still in a very formative stage," and while Reeves was rumored to be the lead, his involvement hasn't been officially confirmed. Thankfully, that's not the only superhero-like role Reeves has up his sleeve in the next few years.
Keanu Reeves returns to The Matrix
While Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter were promoting the third film in the Bill & Ted series, Reeves was simultaneously returning to another of his iconic roles: Neo in The Matrix. If there's one thing character is more known for than John Wick, it's Neo.
The Matrix Revolutions closed out The Matrix trilogy way back in 2003. At the time, it seemed like we'd gotten a pretty definitive ending for Neo, Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss). Over 15 years later, though, one of the original Matrix creators, Lana Wachowski, decided there was still more story to tell. Reeves, it turns out, agrees.
"Lana Wachowski wrote a beautiful script and a wonderful story that resonated with me," said Reeves in an interview with Empire. "That's the only reason to do it. To work with her again is just amazing. It's been really special, and the story has, I think, some meaningful things to say, and that we can take some nourishment from."
The ambitious project also features the return of Moss as Trinity, along with newcomers to the franchise like How I Met Your Mother's Neil Patrick Harris, Watchmen's Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Mindhunter's Jonathan Groff.
Filming for The Matrix 4 is underway, and the film is currently set for a December 22, 2021 release.