Keanu Reeves did not feel the need for “Speed 2.”
After saving the day in an elevator, bus, and a subway in the 1994 blockbuster “Speed,” Reeves infamously turned down reprising his role to rescue an ocean liner alongside Sandra Bullock in the 1997 sequel “Speed 2: Cruise Control.”
Now the 57-year-old is opening up about what led to his decision to walk away from the franchise.
“At the time I didn’t respond to the script,” Reeves said during an appearance on “The Graham Norton Show” on Friday. “I really wanted to work with Sandra Bullock, I loved playing Jack Traven, and I loved ‘Speed’, but an ocean liner?”
With Reeves out of the picture, producers cast Jason Patric in the male lead opposite Bullock.
“I had nothing against the artists involved,” Reeves said, “but at that time I had the feeling it just wasn’t right.”
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When Reeves turned down the sequel, many thought he had made a mistake since the original was such a hit. “Speed 2” wound up being a box office and critical disappointment, with many considering it one of the biggest bombs of all time.
Despite not working with Bullock on “Speed 2,” the two remained close and later teamed up in the 2006 film “The Lake House.”
Last month, Bullock addressed rumors if she and Reeves ever took their relationship beyond friends.
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“Nope,” she told Esquire, noting that “getting-together would have ruined a great friendship."
She added: “But who knows? Keanu’s a guy who, I feel like, is friends with every woman he’s ever dated. I don’t think there’s anyone who has something horrible to say about him. So maybe we could have survived. I don’t know."
Bullock is currently starring in the Netflix film “The Unforgivable,” while Reeves returns as Neo in the fourth film in “The Matrix” franchise, “The Matrix Resurrections,” when it hits theaters and HBO Max on December 22.
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