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A few weeks ago, a picture popped up of Keanu Reeves and his longtime girlfriend, Alexandra Grant, smiling and holding up their left hands to reveal matching wedding rings. They were in a tuxedo and a wedding gown and text over the picture announced that they’d gotten married. It was an AI-generated deepfake image and both Alexandra and Keanu’s rep issued statements denying that they’d gotten married. This was not the first time Keanu has dealt with deepfakes or scams involving his name or likeness, either. In fact, he’s reportedly one of the most-imitated stars and pays a company to combat scams by removing fake accounts and AI images using his likeness.
Keanu and Alex Winter are currently starring in the latest revival of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. That’s right, Bill and Ted are back together for an excellent Broadway adventure. On Tuesday, they did an interview on Today to talk about how their reunion came about. Keanu was also asked for his thoughts on the recent “AI controversy,” including what he thought about the image when he saw it.
Craig Melvin: For folks who don’t know, there’s a picture that surfaced of you and your long-time girlfriend and you were married in the picture. It spread like wildfire, so much so, she actually had to put out a statement saying whoa, guys, we’re not married.
Keanu: I hadn’t seen it until someone from the show showed it to me. I knew what was going on, but I had never seen it. We’re in that world, right?
Craig: There’s lots of AI of Keanu Reeves out there too, by the way.
Keanu: I think that’s happening to a lot of people.
Craig: How disconcerting is that for you?
Keanu: Well, I mean, it’s not a lot of fun. [Mimes talking on the phone] It’s like, ‘Hey, are you really selling this product?’ ‘No!’
Keanu is right that we’re in that world now, but it’s getting really scary. In 2024, there were “roughly a million [deepfake images] created every minute” and scam ads using the faces of public figures were “the most reported” ones. Keanu has spoken out about it before, too. Right now, most of the images or videos have some sort of uncanny valley effect, but the technology gets better by the day, and there are already a lot of people who fall for them. Some people willingly fall for AI deepfakes about celebrities and politicians that they don’t like because it fits their own narrative. We’re living in *that* world now, too. Without proper oversight and regulation, it’s just going to get worse and educating people on spotting AI content and scams can only go so far.
Anyway, Keanu remains a treasure and although I probably won’t have a chance to see Waiting for Godot before it closes on January 4, I love that he and Alex teamed up again. During the interview, Keanu revealed that the idea for their Broadway reunion came to him in a “vision” several years ago, so he called his old friend up and they made it happen. I love that.
Photos credit: Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon, Jeffrey Mayer/Avalon, IMAGO/Avalon, Jennifer Graylock-Graylock.com/Avalon, Getty
hate the deep fakers ugh! but a Keanu mention makes my day! thanks @Rosie
I guess I’m sort of oddly grateful that I don’t and never really have had money or assets substantial enough to be a “target” for scams. I don’t ever look at a product with celebrity backing and think, “Yeah, I’ll buy that because he/she promotes it.” (I’m 51, white lady)