“He had a very nice birthday”: Keanu Reeves Reveals His Present to Godfather Director Francis Ford Coppola on His Birthday
Keanu Reeves, known for his terrific performances in The Matrix films and his recent successful film franchise, John Wick, is one of the most versatile actors in Hollywood. In 2022, Time magazine named the actor one of the ‘100 most influential people in the world’.
On the latest episode of Inside of You podcast, The Matrix star revealed the gift he gave to The Godfather director, Francis Ford Coppola. Reeves also told the podcast host that the director had a “nice birthday” on that day.
Coppola is one of the legendary filmmakers who is considered one of the key people of the ‘New Hollywood’ film movement’ in the 1960s and 1970s. His films The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, and Apocalypse Now are often cited among the greatest films ever made.
The Rain People director and The Replacements actor had worked together in a vampire horror film, Bram Stoker’s Dracula in 1992. Reeves shared Coppola’s birthday incident during an interview for his new album ‘Somewhere Between the Power Lines and Palm Trees.’
Keanu Reeves gave Mushrooms to The Legendary Filmmaker
During the interview with Michael Rosenbaum in the Inside of You podcast on YouTube, Reeves told the podcaster that he once gifted mushrooms to Francis Ford Coppola on his birthday. This happened during the filming of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, in which, the actor worked with the legendary filmmaker.
The Sweet November actor said “I heard it was his birthday,” and continued that he “happened to have an eighth of some mushrooms” which the John Wick star gave to the director. He added that Coppola accepted the gift and told Reeves that “he enjoyed them.” Back then, Keanu Reeves was also dating the director’s daughter, Sofia Coppola, who recently made Priscilla, starring Jacob Elordi and Cailee Spaeny.
The actor appeared in the podcast with Robert Mailhouse and Bret Domrose. The trio started their band, Dogstar, in the mid-1990s and were active until the early 2000s. During that period, the rock band received the limelight due to Reeves being part of it. The band reformed in 2022 and performed at the BottleRock Napa Valley music festival in May 2023.
What Was Reeves’s Role In Coppola’s 1992 adaptation of Dracula?
Bram Stoker’s Dracula was based on Bram Stoker’s 1897 Gothic horror novel, Dracula. Coppola directed the film, while the screenplay was written by James V. Hart. Reeves played ‘Jonathan Harker,’ one of the main protagonists of the film who is an English Solicitor. Harker encounters ‘Count Dracula’ (played by Gary Oldman) and his brides at the castle during his journey towards Transylvania.
Alongside Reeves and Oldman, the other prominent cast included Winona Ryder as ‘Mina Harker,’ and Anthony Hopkins as ‘Professor Abraham Van Helsing.’ The film was released on 13th November 1992 and opened at the top of the box office, earning $215.9 million, while the film’s budget was $40 million.
The film bagged three Oscars for its sound editing, costume design, and makeup along with five BAFTA nominations.
