There were some big surprises thrown out during Lionsgate’s 2024 CinemaCon panel, including the studio bringing out Aziz Ansari to talk about his new comedy Good Fortune with Seth Rogen and Keanu Reeves. The latter has a good relationship with the studio thanks to the John Wick franchise, and filming a comedy after the fourth installment in the franchise might have felt like a breath of fresh air after all the action-heavy stunts Keanu does as Wick. Except, it turns out Good Fortune wasn’t so fortuitous for the actor, after all.
When asked by Lionsgate film chairman Adam Fogelson about filming Good Fortune, the topic of Keanu came up. Ansari had really wanted an all-star cast so he could bring the comedy to the big screen, noting there had only been like “four” comedies given the chance since the pandemic, with one of those making a billion dollars (Barbie), so he felt like theatrical was a great fit. But he got more than he bargained for when Keanu injured himself on set.
Though it is worth noting other people have been injured on the Wick set before, Fogelson joked, “So, Chad Stahelski could not break Keanu Reeves on four John Wick movies…” during the panel. Ansari then confirmed he was the one who managed to "break" the then 58-year-old actor. All it took was someone putting a rug in his trailer.
Keanu’s got those Wick movies, the Matrix stuff, Speed, he actually did attempt to do the jump from the car to the bus –it wasn’t the take they used but he did do it. Never had to go to the hospital… about 15 days into shooting with me, I was like ‘Go chill in your dressing room for 15 minutes,’ and he tripped on a rug. He’s like, ‘my knee!’
You may have already seen the image that subsequently rolled around the Internet. If you haven’t it’s quite notable, as the actor seems to be hobbling around on crutches and with a giant ice pack on his knee. It’s the type of set up you’d probably see after a sports injury, or, you know, an injury that came from attempting a major stunt. But nope, per the newcomer director, Keanu Reeves was not doing something cool while playing the angel Gabriel in the new movie, he was simply hanging out and tripped.
It wasn’t just a tweak either. The rug fall literally fractured Keanu’s kneecap and he was unable to do major stuff on his knee for weeks. The good news is that Good Fortune is literally a comedy, and the actor was able to continue filming mostly without incident, though the director notes they did have to bring a double in for one “salsa” scene.
Sure, it could have happened to anyone, but it’s not exactly how I’d picture the guy who does his own trick riding on a horse in John Wick horrifically injuring himself. For Ansari, who is a first time director with Good Fortune, the news was both problematic and hilarious.
After filming on his original directorial debut Being Mortal was halted thanks to a complaint against Bill Murray, it's been a pivot just to get Good Fortune made. Of course, this movie was then the one that broke Keanu, and then the Internet found out about said injury thanks to a paparazzi photo. But he says the icing on the cake was when “#getwellKeanu” started trending following the release of the crutches image. You gotta love the ever-supportive Keanu fans.
It's unclear if you'll be able to subtly spot the injury once Good Fortune hits theaters, but keep an eye on the 2024 movie release schedule.
