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08 Aug, 2008

Would Keanu Reeves Make A Good Spike Spiegel?

Posted by: David In: Polls

Cowboy Bebop

Cowboy Bebop

Ok, so the other day I mentioned the Cowboy Bebop Live Action Movie that’s apparently in the works. Well, since then I’ve found a few other articles about the announcement:

iFMagazine.com Exclusive: LIVE-ACTION ‘COWBOY BEBOP’ MOVIE IS IN THE WORKS

…Stoff goes on to explain his enthusiasm for the project and their attempts to remain faithful. “I have such an enormous admiration for its creators, that our first and foremost concern is going to be a real degree of faithfulness to the tone of the movie, to the mix of genres, and so on and so forth. When I met with them in Japan, one of the first things that I brought up was the experience that we had on A Scanner Darkly, and how hard we worked to remain faithful to Philip K. Dick, and that was our big concern here.” Don’t get confused, this does not mean that they’re going for a similar animated look like A Scanner Darkly, as he explicitly said that it’s going to be live-action.

AND THEN I came across the following article, via AICN’s Scott Green:

Keanu Reeves As Spike?

Keanu Reeves As Spike?

Rumor: Keanu Reeves as Spike in Cowboy Bebop Movie?!

However, a good friend inside the industry who is a very reliable source wrote in to tell me that the film is being fast tracked inside the studio and will most likely be out by 2010. He also revealed that Keanu Reeves has been attached as the lead character Spike for over eight months now and is still set for the role.

I suddenly had a feeling of deja vu when I read that. So what do you think? Could Keanu Reeves cut it as Spike?

Would Keanu Reeves Make A Good Spike Spiegel In A Live Action Cowboy Bebop?

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10 Responses to "Would Keanu Reeves Make A Good Spike Spiegel?"

1 | Caitlin

August 8th, 2008 at 8:24 am

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Wouldn’t be the first or last time Hollywood has decided to ruin something I love. :(

2 | Mikoto

August 8th, 2008 at 8:42 am

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The only person who would do this worse then Keanu would be Hayden Christensen. I am SO disappointed. Spike has personality, and we all know how Keanu has a hard time playing roles where people actually have to act.

3 | Ajax

August 9th, 2008 at 12:48 am

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No way in hell! Why does Hollywood have such a low estimation of animanga?

4 | Nayoka

August 9th, 2008 at 4:33 pm

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In the name of Sibu from Soul Hunter, “I rather eat a mooncake with my eyeball”

5 | Dr-Klu

August 9th, 2008 at 6:37 pm

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He might be able to pull off the gamut of emotion spike delivers his lines with, but he just doesn’t have a feel that says “Spike” you know?
If they had to get someone for it, maybe Adrian Pasdar (Dark Knight: Two Face) if he lost some weight. Problem is Spike has such a thin frame…

Shitty situation I know. What I’m curius to know though, is how the hell are they suppossed to find a little girl nutty enough to be Edward. :/

6 | sam

August 10th, 2008 at 11:02 am

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impeaching can be fun.
yes he’ll be great.
impeaching can be just as enjoyable as crack.

7 | Emily

August 10th, 2008 at 6:10 pm

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Oh. Hell. NO.

8 | David

August 11th, 2008 at 8:39 am

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Caitlin - Maybe they’ll make up for it with a great story and supporting cast?

Mikoto - Poor Hayden…he gets no respect, lol. But I agree that he would be a bad choice for Spike. For Keanu, I think it’s not really an ‘acting’ issue. He just seems to choose rolls where he doesn’t really have to show a wide range of emotion.

Ajax - I don’t think Hollywood necessarily looks down on anime and manga. When an adaptation is changed beyond recognition, it’s usually either due to poor creative decisions or for a more evil purpose: to make it a ’sure thing’ (i.e. blockbuster).

Nayoka - LOL!

Dr-Klu - If Keanu had done it 8 years ago when they said he was first interested in Cowboy Bebop, he might have been ok. Now? Probably not. Hopefully they don’t make Ed an annoying character. It will be tricky.

sam - …

Emily - Maybe Keanu will have a scheduling conflict or something when they start filming, lol.

9 | susie

August 11th, 2008 at 12:21 pm

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Ugh Keanu is the worst actor ever…he would be awful as Spike!! Nooooooo!! He’s fine playing a character that is supposed to be goofy and not know what’s going on, but Spike should be played by someone cooler…

10 | Shari

October 5th, 2008 at 4:16 am

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It’s ridiculous that so many ppl have this knee-jerk reaction to hearing about live-action movies ‘Wah, wah, they’re gonna ruin it’ ‘Omg it’s gonna suck so bad’ Get ahold of yourself and be excited about it for once. I’m always excited. Usually, people’s intentions are not to take the story we all love and eff it up, they love it just as much as we do and they work hard to get it right. Of course not everyone is going to love it, but it does not mean that all live-action adaptations are crap. It’s the same way people discriminate against dubbed anime versus subbed. There are lots of awesome English voice actors out there, don’t write them off so quickly.

It’s sad that so many people think Keanu is a bad actor. He does tend to pick a certain type of roll that’s kind of deadpan, but he does it well. I think he’s ‘cool’ enough to play Spike (watch movie Constantine), but I’m worried about the way he speaks - he has sort of a sexy beach bum kind of accent, and that’s not Spike at all.. If he could learn to speak differently then I’d be less worried. Steve Blum’s shoes are hard to fill in the voice department!

But honestly, Keanu as Spike is the least of our worries - who the hell is gonna play Ed?!?!

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Note: We absolutely, positively LOVE comments! Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Remember your manners, and please limit or mark spoiler comments with "SPOILER". Thanks!


  • Ultrakid: Maybe Tatsuya Fujiwara and Erika Toda didn't look like there anime counterparts but I thought they were good and the director is actually pretty popul
  • Caitlin: This series was one of the funniest I've seen in a long time and I plan on getting it after the release it in both parts.
  • Caitlin: I've had rice with chestnuts and man, that thing sticks like peanut butter! I imagine that 3 dry, rough textures would send me running for some water

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