Image copyright Alamy Image caption Sandra Bullock, Keanu Reeves and Ray Liotta star in Speed, which was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer
Screenwriter Gary Foster has revealed how Sandra Bullock came up with an idea for a reunion with Keanu Reeves for her new movie.
The actress thinks the Matrix star will have a “new heroic journey” after he finished playing her son in 1995’s Speed.
Foster added that the pair had shared a ducking stool for their first meeting and joked that the pair had “already known each other for years”.
Speed’s producer, Jerry Bruckheimer, also discussed the pair’s upcoming film, Death Wish.
“When Keanu and I talked about this script at the beginning, he talked about another movie and I asked him, what about this one?” said Bruckheimer.
Image copyright Twentieth Century Fox Image caption Ken Kercheval played Michael Meyers in the original film
The new film, a modern remake of the 1974 hit written by Michael Winner, is currently filming in Los Angeles and centres on a retired and wealthy father of two fighting a vigilante cop in his home city of New York.
The filmmaker – who has also produced the first three films in the Bourne series – was asked about Reeves’ possible similarity to John McClane – the character played by Bruce Willis in Die Hard.
“The old show and tell was really about Bruce [Willis] doing a full turn and knowing you could pull out a weapon, but Keanu’s not quite Bruce as an actor,” he said.
A stand-out shot from the original film. Image caption Scott Eastwood plays Ethan in the new movie
Reeves, who has starred in The Matrix, Total Recall and Point Break, was less diplomatic about the role, calling the new movie “just a mindless action flick with violence”.
Harking back to when Reeves cast Ken Kercheval to play Michael Meyers, he added: “He said to me, ‘If he does anything with this movie, is that really the point? Is that worth a damn?’
“And, of course, I said, ‘Of course it is!'”
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