The Real Reason Keanu Reeves Nearly Changed His Name

Yep, you read that right: Keanu Reeves almost had to change his iconic name at the behest of his agents, he once revealed on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." Arriving in Tinseltown at the age of 20, Reeves had stars in his eyes and big dreams to fulfill. Unfortunately, Reeves' Hollywood arrival came at a time where the cultural zeitgeist was controlled by white male forces — one where any form of extraneous ethnicity was frowned upon, he explained.

In an interview with Us Weekly (per Whoa Is (Not) Me), Reeves revealed that his agents wanted to change his name upon arrival due to its perceived "ethnicity." "That was a terrible, terrible phase, which lasted about a month. I had driven across the country, and the day that I arrived on these shores, I was informed that my manager and my agent at the time were having trouble getting me in to see some casting agents because of my name," Reeves revealed. "It had an ethnicity to it that they found was getting in the way."

After being told that it was crucial he alter his moniker, the "John Wick" star explained, rightly so, that "that freaked me out completely." He then "came up with names like Page Templeton III. And Chuck [Spadina] [because my] middle name is Charles." He noted that he settled for KC Reeves, which he lamented as "terrible," and revealed, "When I would go to auditions, I'd tell them my name was Keanu anyway."

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