Keanu Reeves is commonly considered one of the kindest, most thoughtful actors in Hollywood, and plenty of stories support this claim. The actor, best known for his roles as Neo in The Matrix, John Wick in the John Wick films, and Johnny Utah in Point Break, has been a Hollywood icon for decades. The star’s work ethic, which has seen Reeves learning new skills for several roles, along with his quiet charisma and apparent agelessness, has secured the star some of the most high-profile and high-paying film roles in memory. However, he remains astonishingly grounded and thoughtful.

Keanu Reeves himself has by no means had an easy life. A difficult upbringing, losing some loved ones and seeing others struggle with disease would be enough to turn anyone jaded and unfriendly. However, Reeves seems to have chosen to bring positivity into the world, whether by going out of his way to be friendly to fans, offering lavish gifts to below-the-line film collaborators or simply stealthily engaging in philanthropy. The overall image is of a modest, generous person who sets an example in an industry full of difficult personalities.

10. Keanu Reeves Quietly Operates A Charitable Foundation

Keanu Reeves has always been extremely generous with his Hollywood earnings. He is reported (via Vogue) to have donated over $30 million to cancer research, a cause in which he became personally invested after his sister was diagnosed with Leukemia. In 2009, Reeves admitted, “I have a private foundation that’s been running for five or six years, and it helps aid a couple of children’s hospitals and cancer research.” However, the star chooses not to publicize the endeavor, stating, “I don’t like to attach my name to it, I just let the foundation do what it does.”

9. Keanu Reeves Took Time Answering A Young Boy’s Questions At The Airport

It’s common for celebrities to be polite to fans and even agree to a quick selfie, but Keanu Reeves was spotted going above and beyond at an airport when a young boy approached him with a legion of rapid-fire questions. A bystander documented the exchange, in which Reeves gave the boy an autograph and diligently answered the deluge of questions before firing back with a volley of his own. The bystander (via Twitter) stated: “The man couldn’t have been nicer, especially after an international flight,” and added that Reeves even took a photo with him once he was done speaking with the boy.

Keanu Reeves was on my flight from London to NYC today. A young boy asked for an autograph at baggage & then began to fire off a series of rapid-fire questions. Keanu happily responded to every single one… pic.twitter.com/T7m7PciL5C

— Andrew Kimmel (@andrewkimmel) July 4, 2022

8. Keanu Reeves Invited Trespassers In For A Beer

On a 2017 Facebook post, a woman shared a unique experience she had with Keanu Reeves in the 1990s. On her post, Chris Johnston recalls visiting California and being taken by her cousin to see Reeves’ house, at which point “we climbed the wrought iron fence to his property” and “knocked on the open door.” Reeves, rather than call the police on the trespassers, invited them in for a beer and a chat. Johnston left with s signed letter from Reeves as well as a film camera full of pictures that were nearly lost to a light leak. Thankfully, enough evidence survived for Johnston to back up her wild story.

7. Keanu Reeves Accompanied Fellow Stranded Travelers On A Road Trip

Another story of Reeves’ positivity came from Instagram, where a user posted about a catastrophic day of travel made brighter by Keanu Reeves. When a plane full of people was forced to make an emergency landing in Bakersfield, CA, the trying 100-mile minibus journey to their Los Angeles destination was improved by one of the passengers, Keanu Reeves. The Instagram post shows Reeves regaling his fellow commuters with facts about Bakersfield and playing music for the journey. After his Reeves post went viral, the user Brian Rea captioned the post with links to charities, urging people to donate “in the spirit of what a generous person Mr. Reeves is.”

6. Keanu Reeves Gave Each Member Of The John Wick 4 Stunt Team A Customized Rolex

Keanu Reeves exercised his famous generosity once again when filming John Wick: Chapter 4. The series, which features meticulously choreographed action sequences, relies heavily on its talented stuntpeople. Reeves showed his appreciation for his personal five-man stunt team when John Wick 4 wrapped filming by gifting each one a Rolex Submariner, worth around $10,000 and engraved with a personal message. Reeves also thanked the wider team of 35 stunt people who worked on the film, gifting each John Wick 4 stunt performer a personalized T-shirt stating how many times that performer “died” in the film.

5. Keanu Reeves Jumped Out Of His Car To Sign An Autograph

Another Keanu Reeves Twitter story demonstrates his love and enthusiasm for his fans. Bill and Ted franchise co-writer Ed Solomon shared a story from the production of Bill and Ted Face The Music in which Keanu “jumped out of the car” that was taking him to set when he spotted a sign meant for him on the lawn of a house. Reeves took time out of his busy shooting day to autograph the sign without being asked. The sign said “YOU’RE BREATHTAKING,” a reference to the iconic moment during Reeves’ 2019 E3 appearance.

So yesterday this sign was out on a lawn on the way to set. Keanu jumped out of the car and did this. pic.twitter.com/OI1bQJ1nfy

— Ed Solomon (@ed_solomon) July 18, 2019

4. Keanu Reeves Bought Motorcycles For The Matrix Reloaded’s Stunt Team

Keanu Reeves’ extravagant gift for his John Wick 4 stunt team is predated by an even more generous gift to his Matrix: Reloaded stunt team. Reeves had to learn 200 new moves for the film, with his most demanding scene being the memorable fight between Neo and over a hundred Agent Smiths. The stunt performers found themselves being slammed to the ground 20 or more times in the course of the fight (via Seattle Pi), while Reeves had to resort to regular ice baths. Once filming wrapped, Reeves bought all 12 members of the stunt team Harley Davidson Motorcycles to thank them for their hard work.

3. Keanu Reeves Took Homeless People For Dinner

In 1997, Keanu Reeves spent some time living on the streets of Los Angeles, attempting to understand more about the experience of homelessness in preparation for a role in a (scrapped) film. Reeves stayed in a spot where four homeless people were also camped. He said (via Cheatsheet), “they befriended me and taught me all their tricks of the trade” for four days before Reeves was spotted and forced to return to his hotel to avoid unwanted attention. However, the star returned soon after to invite them to dinner. “I expected them to ask for a steak or lobster, but all they wanted was to go to McDonalds,” said Reeves.

2. Keanu Reeves Bought Champagne And Truffles For Sandra Bullock

Sandra Bullock recently shared a sweet Reeves story about the star’s thoughtfulness. Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock met as co-stars in the 1994 action film Speed. Bullock recalls their friendship (via Esquire) had a rocky start, with the chatty Bullock often assuming she had offended the Reeves, who is generally quiet. However, Bullock soon found the actor expresses friendship through other means, such as notes and gifts. On one instance, she recalls mentioning that she had never tried champagne or truffles to Reeves, who showed up at her door several days later, champagne and truffles in hand.

1. Keanu Reeves Made Sure A Teenaged Theater Worker Got His Autograph

Another account of Keanu Reeves’ kindness comes from a Twitter thread. In 2001, the teenager James Dator was working at a movie theater in Sidney when Reeves came to buy a ticket. Dator offered to use his employee discount, hoping to get Reeves’ signature on the discount sheet, but a confused Reeves elected to buy a regular ticket. However, when Reeves realized the teen had been angling for his autograph, he went back and handed him his autograph on a piece of receipt paper. The star had bought an ice cream he didn’t want to obtain a receipt for a fan who was too nervous to ask for an autograph.