Keanu Reeves as alien life form?

10 December 2008 03:06pm

Keanu Reeves is an alien, his latest director has joked.

American filmmaker Scott Derrickson decided to cast the Matrix star as an alien in sci-fi film The Day The Earth Stood Still, and explains why it was an easy decision.

"We all know the answer to that - Keanu is an alien," he dead-panned at the film's New York premiere.

Scott then added: "I really do believe that Keanu, as an actor, has very particular gifts and I don't think there are a lot of actors who can do the things he does.

"I don't think any other actor in the world could have done the Matrix movies and not looked ridiculous. And it has to do with his understanding of his own physicality, his ability to show nuances and draw audiences in without a lot of dialogue sometimes.

"In this case, I knew he would be able to portray the oddness and the uniqueness of an alien without it being over-the-top, silly or distracting.

"That was what I needed for the movie, and that's why he was my first choice for the role."

The director said he didn't have to steer Keanu too much, saying: "He seemed to have a pretty good handle on how to portray the character and how it changes through the course of the movie."

The Day The Earth Stood Still, which also stars Jennifer Connelly and Jaden Smith, will be released on December 12.

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