It’s been more than 20 years since the arrival of ‘The Matrix’ in movie theaters around the world and no one could imagine another actor in the role of Neo, the main protagonist, instead of Keanu Reeves.
However, the actor may have lost the role due to a secret that nearly cost him not only the role, but also his health.
During his participation in the podcast ‘The Art of Action’, the interpreter revealed what happened during those months in which he prepared for the start of the filming of the science fiction film.
Reeves said that he had just finished shooting some movies like ‘Speed’ or ‘They Call Him Bodhi’ that caused some neck injuries.
The injuries that almost caused Reeves to say goodbye to ‘Matrix’
“I had spent a couple of years fighting it, I was getting tingles,” he said.
In fact, he revealed that during the filming of ‘Chain Reaction’ he had to pinch himself to hold on.
“I had a disc bulge and also a ruptured disc, and I started losing feeling and balance,” he added.
This was followed by the meeting with the Wachowski sisters, in which they told him he had to follow martial arts training in Hong Kong and he, despite everything, accepted.
“I said yes to Matrix and four months into the training, but it was pretty bad so I went to a neck doctor and I also had spinal stenosis, my spine was being mutilated, basically,” Reeves said.
After undergoing surgery in which two vertebrae were joined together and a plate was put in his neck, he didn’t say anything.
“I never told anyone because I didn’t want to tell anyone I couldn’t do the movie,” he said on the podcast.
“They put the plate in my neck and told me to start moving right away.
“I had to train for the Matrix with a neck brace.”