Over 11 years ago (we are old!), Keanu Reeves was papped sitting on a bench looking dejected. The “Sad Keanu” meme was born. Last night Keanu went on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to promote The Matrix Resurrections, and at the end of the interview Stephen Colbert brought up Keanu co-writing a comic book series called BRZRKR. He presented a side-by-side of the Sad Keanu picture and a panel from the comics in which the artist recreated the meme. Keanu chuckled and insisted, “I was just eating a sandwich, man!” Stephen asked if he was actually sad in the photo, and Keanu replied, “I was thinking! I had some stuff going on. I was hungry.” Story. Of. My. Life.
As always, Keanu seems like a genuine, goofy dude. When Stephen asked him why he thinks there are so many Keanu memes out there, he said that he has “no clue, sir.” Stephen responded:
You don’t understand? Like… because you have such a distinct character of your own, and yet people kinda lay on you meaning… you know what I mean?
That’s when Keanu busts into a Lean on Me song parody: “Meme on me! When you’re not strong! I’ll be your friend…” Oh, KeKe. We don’t deserve you. Here’s a clip from the interview. The Sad Keanu stuff is around the 2:25 mark:
Keanu’s fascination with Internet things like memes and NFTs is delightful to watch. So delightful that I might even go see The Matrix Resurrections. Armed with a giant sack of edibles and wine, of course. Because it looks duuumb.
Pic: YouTube