The Bizarre Keanu Reeves Conspiracy Theory Explained

When "Speed" star Keanu Reeves was asked by Stephen Colbert on "The Late Show" in 2019 what he thinks happens when we die, Reeves replied sweetly, "I know that the ones who love us will miss us." But there's a very real and very dedicated Keanu fanbase out there that's totally convinced Reeves will never die because he's secretly immortal. (You read that right.)

Yes, he's starred in some iconic time-travelling roles in his 35+ year career as a Hollywood actor, lending to the conspiracy theory. Who could forget "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure," "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey," and other movies that explored non-linear timelines, like "The Lake House," or characters who are immortal, like "Bram Stoker's Dracula"? Reeves himself even said at one point that he'd love to "travel back in time" to steal the role of "Wolverine" from Hugh Jackman's claw-like hands. 

And we think we're all in agreement when we say the man has aged rather well. Like Paul Rudd, Reeves looks almost the same as he did in the 1990s during his "Point Break" era. And as the official "Keanu Reeves Is Immortal" website points out (yes, there's an entire site for this!), he bears an uncanny resemblance to 8th century king Charlemagne and 19th century actor Paul Mounet. What sorcery is this? What's the source of his eternal youth? 

Around 2010, a "Keanu Reeves Is Immortal" website popped up, capitalizing off of popular Reddit threads that questioned why "The Matrix" star refused to age even a little bit, per Vulture. Every few years, social media will run with this theory, with Keanu-stans on Twitter posting side-by-side comparisons between the "John Wick" star as he looked in the '80s, '90s, aughts, 2010s, and today. 

Not only does he basically look the same, but he also looks like people from history — like a 1530 Parmigianino painting of an unknown man who is giving off serious "Constantine" vibes. The "Johnny Mnemonic" star didn't help matters in 2003 when he told The Chicago Tribune, "Money is the last thing I think about. I could live on what I have already made for the next few centuries." Centuries, eh?

In 2017, he finally addressed the conspiracy theories during an appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon," where — and we cannot stress this enough — he didn't exactly deny the rumors. "We're all stardust, baby!" is all he exclaimed to Fallon, while visibly bemused as the host showed him pictures of his doppelgängers: Charlemagne, Paul Mounet, and the Parmigianino painting. What does that even mean?

In December 2021, "John Wick" star Keanu Reeves told The Guardian, "When you're young, you have a big old reel of that tape left, right? And so it appears to revolve slowly. Then, time passes, and there's less and less tape left on the reel. It spins faster. It spins faster. I've wanted to get as much done as I can before that turning tape runs out...." So it would seem, despite the conspiracy theories, Reeves acknowledges that he does, in fact, age.

Beyond acknowledging it, he admitted to the outlet that he has even had a few mid-life reflections because of his aging. "How old am I now, 57?" he said. "Around the time I hit 40, there was this idea of creating more from my artistic loins." He had previously spoken about the 40th birthday experience to The Independent in 2012, saying, "I had the classic 40 meltdown ...  Hormonally, my body was changing, my mind was changing, and so my relationship to myself and the world around me came to this assault of finiteness," (via RTE). "It was also the end of the projection of my younger self. I came to the place where I thought, 'I don't know where I am anymore but where have I come from and what am I doing?'"

So, it would appear Reeves suffers from the same effects of aging as the rest of us. Still, we'd like to see his long form birth certificate.