Keanu Reeves Reveals Origin Story Behind 'Sad Keanu' Meme

Keanu Reeves is revealing the hilariously mundane story behind the "sad Keanu" meme, sharing on Monday's The Late Show with Stephen Colbert that he wasn't actually feeling sad when the photo that went viral was taken. The Matrix Resurrections actor, 57, told host Stephen Colbert that what was going through his mind when the melancholy photo of him was taken was more about his stomach than anything else. 

"I'm just eating a sandwich!" Reeves exclaimed. "Man, I'm eating a sandwich. ... I was thinking. I had some stuff going on. I was hungry." The John Wick actor added he had "no clue" why so many of his photos have turned into memes, but added that "sad Keanu" even made its way into a new project he's embarking on. Co-writing the sci-fi comic book series BRZRKR with Matt Kindt, Reeves told Colbert artist Ron Garney recreated the meme in one of the panels, as the lead character's look is based on his own face.

"I didn't know he was gonna do that, but that's what he did, so I think it's kind of meta," Reeves noted. "The artist kind of – I think – took that meme and whatever that is, that photo, and put it into the comic book. So that's life in art." The Speed actor is also having a bit of a meta moment as he reprises his role as Neo in Matrix Resurrections, which debuts in theaters Dec. 22 after the original film trilogy's run from 1999 to 2003. 

It may be almost two decades since Reeves played Neo, but he didn't shy away from taking the character to new heights, he told Colbert Monday. The actor revealed he had to jump off a 46-story building for the film, which he did without relying on a green screen or special effects. "Because it's [director] Lana Wachowski and it's The Matrix and you need natural light and you want to do it real," Reeves said. "We wanted to do it in the perfect light in the morning so around 19 to 20 times."

Reeves isn't a person who enjoys heights when it comes to activities like bungee jumping, but he told Colbert he didn't let the fear get in the way of filming. "You can't think of the fear," he said. "You have to deal with it, absorb it, and then just be there and do ... and that's what we did."