Keanu Reeves as Klaatu
Keanu Reeves, who is making his come back to cinema after a tragic phase in his life, says�his childhood fantasy came true�when he was selected to�star in the remake of the 1951 sci-fi thriller The Day The Earth Stood Still. It was a series that he used to enjoy on TV as a teenager in the early 1980s. "I saw it first when I was 14 or 15 on a black and white TV and I loved it. I remember as a young boy enjoying the spectacle, the drama, the flying saucer, the scary music, and the power when everything stopped in the world. But watching the film again, I observed the sly and clever social commentary about the media and the world," he said.
Keanu plays Klaatu, an iconic alien messenger who takes the form of a human. His arrival on Earth sets off a great deal of trouble; it is up to the scientists to get things back on track. In the past, Keanu has been pretty vocal about his disapproval of remakes, so what made him make an exception? The new interpretation and script for the film and Klaatu’s characterization, he says. "This new film is a cautionary tale about human survival on the precipice and our relationship�with the planet. It's about the human character, human nature, the fact that it is only when our backs are up against the wall that we do anything to change our behaviour," he said. Adding, "Klaatu has a wonderful sort of ease about him. He has a quality to him. The audiences will believe his naturalistic bemusement and also his frustrations."
Directed by Scott Derickson, The Day the Earth Stood Still makes its global release on December 12th.
