Keanu Reeves Has Shaved Off His Trademark Black Locks

Dec 28, 2020 by apost team

Besides his ageless face, tall stature, kind heart, and good everything, actor Keanu Reeves, 56, is easily recognized by his signature long dark hair. But earlier this month, fans are surprised to discover that he has shaved it all off! Read on to see how he looks like currently.

Actor Keanu Reeves turned 56 in September this year. Besides blockbusters like John Wick and The Matrix franchises, the Canadian actor is also the star of many popular memes, making him not just one of Hollywood's most beloved but also an icon of the Internet.

Earlier this month, Reeves appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to talk about what it is like reuniting with Bill & Ted co-star Alex Winter for the third and final film for the series, Bill & Ted Face The Music. In the interview with host Jimmy Fallon which was posted to the show’s YouTube channel on December 1st, Reeves and Winter share about their first encounter with the other at the audition for the movie and also what it was like working with comedian George Carlin.

But fans and viewers were not as nearly interested in the topic of conversation as they were with Reeves’ new do, a number 3 haircut — a rather drastic change from his usual long-ish, dark locks. People are saying he looks like Officer Jack Traven from the 1994 movie, Speed, again. This would mean that it has been about 26 years since Reeves got his head shaved. To say that this new buzz cut has been well-received would be an understatement. People online have been raving about it since his appearance on the show (the actor does not have any social media accounts, not that we know of, anyway) and talking about how handsome he looks in it. Some have even said that the short hair has taken years off of him! (Not like he needs that.)

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“Keanu Reeves with short hair still breathtaking,” one comment read. “Dude Keanu looks killer with that short hair,” wrote one Matthew Palanca.

Born to a mother of British descent and a father of British, Chinese, Portuguese, and Native Hawaiian descent, Reeves has his mixed heritage to thank for his good genes. The actor is known for looking pretty much as hunky as he did when he first entered the big screens in the 80s, and many people are pointing that out right now, especially with his much shorter hair. “Speed came out over 25 years ago, and here’s Keanu looking pretty much identical to how he looked in that film. The dude’s immortal, I tell ya!” wrote one viewer. 

One person even went as far as to ask if the interview was even from this year. “Is this a 2020 episode? Keanu looks so young with his haircut! Can you believe he is four years away from being 60?!” they said.

Reeves’ girlfriend, American visual artist Alexandra Grant, has also made the news because of her hair. In 2019, the 47-year-old opened up about why she let her hair go naturally gray and why she refuses to dye it. She talked about her past with hair dyes and how she finally stopped using them altogether.

Grant took to Instagram and shared a photo from a news headline that read: Breast Cancer Linked to Permanent Hair Dye and Chemical Hair Straighteners in Study of Almost 50,000 Women. Grant wrote next to the photo, "Today's news... The numbers are staggering, especially for womxn of color." 

According to a study from researchers in the International Journal of Cancer, women who regularly use permanent hair dye could be increasing their risk of breast cancer by up to 60%. The study looked at more than 45,000 women and found the link between permanent hair dye and breast cancer. Predominantly black women were the most affected in the study. 

Grant continued discussing how her hair actually turned gray when she was very young. "I went gray prematurely in my early 20's... and dyed my hair every color along the way until I couldn't tolerate the toxicity of the dyes anymore. In my 30's I let my hair turn 'blonde,'" she said.

Grant came into the spotlight when she stepped out on the red carpet with Reeves at the LACMA Art + Film Gala in Los Angeles. According to The New York Times, Grant is an LA-based artist who creates text-based artworks. She and Reeves met at a dinner party in 2009. Since then they became business partners and friends. 

Grant finished off her post on hair dye by saying, "I love and support that every womxn can choose how she wants to look at every age. But/and, if womxn are perishing from beauty standards... then let's talk about those beauty standards."

According to Grant’s interview with Vogue, the couple started working professionally together for the first time around 2011 when the two published the book Ode to Happiness, which includes Reeves’ poetry and Grants’ drawings. “The book was made as a surprise, by me, for Keanu, as a private gift,” Grant told the magazine.

“All our friends sitting in the room got the giggles when I gave it to him—they said, ‘Please publish it!’ So that’s how we got into publishing.”

According to his IMDb, Keanu’s first name means “cool breeze over the mountains,” and if you ask us, he has definitely lived up to that. Reeves has long been an icon, but last year, in particular, his career reached a peak — a period of activity that many call “the Keanaissance.” But he did not earn that just from his films.

Outside of work, Keanu has made headlines numerous times just by being a genuinely good guy. His kind gesture of offering his seat to a woman on the subway, the time he helped organize a road trip with fellow passengers after an emergency plane landing, and when he shared a meal with a homeless guy are just a few examples that are a testament to his character.

Comments that were not about his hair in The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon interview were mainly about how Reeves seemed to be in good spirits. He was noticeably energetic while talking to Fallon, sometimes going up close to the camera comically and showing enthusiasm for a cereal box designed after Bill & Ted. “Did Keanu drink like 30 bottles of soda before this interview?” one viewer asked. 

Viewers also expressed their excitement in seeing his co-star, Winter. “Everyone here [is] talking about Keanu... haha don't get me wrong I love the guy, but I'm just as stoked to see Alex Winter again!,” read one of the comments.“Love seeing Keanu’s energy and passion when he’s hanging out with true friends,” one Barb Wiggins wrote. “Alex definitely brings out the fun side of Keanu and is a great friend."

The actors shared that the first time they met was during the auditions for Bill & Ted. “Earlier auditions we met for the first time and became friends pretty instantaneously,” Winter said to Fallon. “I mean, we both rode motorcycles and so we both walked in with motorcycle helmets.”

Winter revealed that auditioning for the movie was an “arduous” process. “The auditions went on for months and months and they kept pairing us off with different people and changing our roles. And we became friends over the arduous Bill & Ted audition gauntlet without assuming we were going to be cast.” 

The first movie in the series, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, was released in 1989. The plot revolves around the pair struggling to write a history report and being sent back in time to do some real research on the topic. The second movie, Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, was released in 1991. A pair of Bill and Ted robots are sent back in time to kill Bill and Ted. They meet the Grim Reaper, enlist allies against the robots, engage in a battle of the bands, and rescue princesses. Bill & Ted Face the Music comes 19 years after the sequel. Bill and Ted get back together, this time as middle-aged men. They then set out on a wild time-traveling adventure, looking for the perfect song that will restore the universe’s harmony. In this version, their daughters are coming along on the quest. Samara Weaving and Brigette Lundy-Paine are playing the daughters.

Winter and Reeves said production of the third film was entirely driven by themselves in response to requests from fans. Winter said: “It’s all because of you guys. We owe you a huge debt of gratitude so we wanted to say thank you.”

What is your take? Do you prefer Keanu with longer hair, or do you think he looks younger and more handsome with the buzz but? Let us know how you feel in the comments and be sure to pass this story along to get the opinions of your loved ones as well!