One of the last movies to open in 2016 was Passengers, the science fiction story about Jim and Aurora, two people who awaken from their hibernation pods on a starship 90 years before the ship is supposed to arrive at its intended destination. Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence were the movie's two main stars, but had things gone differently, Keanu Reeves would have been the one playing the main male character.
While plugging John Wick: Chapter 2 in an interview with Yahoo Movies, Reeves talked about how he acquired the Passengers script (written by Jon Spaihts) back in 2007, and the plan was for him to produce and star in the movie. However, due to various setbacks and obstacles (such as actresses like Reese Witherspoon and Rachel McAdams departing), by early 2015, Sony Pictures bought the rights and Chris Pratt was brought on board instead. Fortunately for Passengers, Reeves liked what he saw from the final product. He said:
I think what Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence did with that was really amazing. They're such a wonderful actor and actress. [Laurence Fishburne] is in that, and he did an amazing turn. ... I was really happy that my producing partner --- Stephen Hamel; he developed that script --- and Jon Spaihts, the writer [had their movie made]. Everyone worked so hard for so long. I'm just happy that beautiful story got told by such wonderful people.
So even though Keanu Reeves' dream of starring in Passengers never came true, his consolation prize was approving what eventually was released in theaters. Had Reeves been able to make the movie in the latter part of last decade, I could see his version of Passengers looking somewhat similar, minus the enhanced CGI effects. However, it's hard to imagine him co-starring beside someone like Jennifer Lawrence in 2016, so it's probably for the best that Sony went with Chris Pratt instead.
As Keanu Reeves mentioned, even though he didn't get to star in Passengers, his Matrix and John Wick: Chapter 2 costar, Laurence Fishburne briefly appeared in the movie. Fishburne was one of only four other actors besides Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence who had meaningful roles in the movie, the others being Michael Sheen, Andy Garcia and Aurora Perrineau. Although Passengers received mixed reviews from critics, it collected nearly $290 million worldwide. It's also earned two Oscar nominations for Best Original Score and Best Production Design, but you'll have to tune in to the Academy Awards ceremony later this month to learn if it take home those golden trophies.
Passengers is still playing in some theaters across the United States, but there's no word on when it will be available on home media. You can see Keanu Reeves jump back into action when John Wick: Chapter 2 is released on February 10.
