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Back in 1994, Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock came together to deliver one of the most thrilling action flicks of all time, Speed. Shot almost entirely on a bus, the movie grasps your attention right from the get-go, making sure your eyes are always on the screen, no matter what. The movie was very well-received by both critics and fans and is still considered one of the best additions to the genre. It eventually gave birth to a sequel, Speed 2: Cruise Control, but we don’t talk about that.
Speed (1994) | Credits: 20th Century FoxRecently, Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock, and director Jan de Bont were reunited for the thirtieth anniversary of the movie and their reunion resulted in many revelations from the past. At one point, Sandra Bullock credited Keanu Reeves for helping her maintain her dignity on set when the action sequences prompted wardrobe malfunctions.
Keanu Reeves Reveals the Number of Cameras in ‘Speed’
Jan de Bont, Keanu Reeves, and Sandra Bullock at the Egyptian Theatre | Credits: Kellen Pembleton / YouTubeThe stars appeared at the historic Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood recently to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Speed. During a Q&A session at the screening, Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock, and Jan de Bont reminisced about the past and what it was like to create a film that would be written down in history.
Reeves recalled how the film wasn’t shot on just one bus, but eleven. He then pointed at the director, calling him the “master cinematographer,” revealing there were, give or take, 22 cameras around them during filming.
He stated,
I counted 22 cameras once in the front. In front of us there would be 22 cameras. There’d be one camera like, Sandra’s hands, one camera from when I turn there, another camera here, there was cameras above here, there were cameras down there.
Bullock quickly intervened and made sure to make it clear that there were, in fact, “no cameras down there.”
Well, when you’re collaborating with a cinematographer-turned-filmmaker like De Bont, you best believe he will not stop at anything to make the movie a sight to behold. Speed is a perfect example of this.
Sandra Bullock On How Keanu Reeves Saved Her Integrity
The airport escape in Speed | Credits: 20th Century FoxWhile talking about shooting the action scenes, specifically the one at the airport, Bullock revealed that they realized during rehearsals that her dress was so light it would flow up her head due to the velocity of the air.
Of course, that is a wardrobe malfunction no one wants to have in front of 22 or more cameras. Therefore, Reeves made it his responsibility to shield Bullock from the embarrassment. He made sure that the dress would stay in its place, all while performing the crazy stunt.
Bullock recalled,
I had this dress that was very light and I had a body suit underneath it. When we started rehearsing, I noticed that the velocity of the air would shoot the skirt over my head, the bottom part. So, Keanu’s job was for me, the most important thing which is just put your hands in a way that the skirt doesn’t fly over my head. So, not only did he have to do the stunt to keep me safe, he had to keep my integrity intact, keeping things that didn’t need to be seen on a 17 foot screen.
The scene in question is when Reeve’s character, Officer Jack Traven, makes Bullock’s Annie Porter drive the bus into an airport. After the passengers escape safely, Annie and Jack escape from underneath the bus, sliding all the way across the ground as the bus crashes into an empty cargo plane. Do we need more proof that Reeves is the literal definition of the word ‘gentleman’?
Speed is available to watch on STARZ via Prime Video.
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