"Basically it starts with four months of training, just basic stretching, kicking and punching. Then you come to the choreography and getting ready to put the dance together"
About this Quote
The subtext is a quiet argument about authenticity in an era of stunt doubles, CG cleanup, and brand-managed press tours. Reeves frames physical training not as macho suffering but as discipline in service of choreography, and then he slips in the tell: “put the dance together.” That phrase recodes violence as performance, closer to ballet than brawling, and it hints at the real product being sold - not brutality, but precision. The hits have to read clean on camera, the bodies have to sync, the danger has to look spontaneous while being carefully negotiated.
Context matters: Reeves became a modern action template through The Matrix and later John Wick, franchises celebrated for legible fight geography and rhythmic gun-fu. His quote belongs to a broader cultural pivot back toward practical skill and rehearsal as a kind of moral good - a counterweight to frictionless digital spectacle. He’s not preaching; he’s normalizing the work. That’s the charm and the intent: make the extraordinary feel earned, and make the actor sound like the most diligent person in the room.
Quote Details
| Topic | Movie |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
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Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Reeves, Keanu. (2026, January 16). Basically it starts with four months of training, just basic stretching, kicking and punching. Then you come to the choreography and getting ready to put the dance together. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/basically-it-starts-with-four-months-of-training-93162/
Chicago Style
Reeves, Keanu. "Basically it starts with four months of training, just basic stretching, kicking and punching. Then you come to the choreography and getting ready to put the dance together." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/basically-it-starts-with-four-months-of-training-93162/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Basically it starts with four months of training, just basic stretching, kicking and punching. Then you come to the choreography and getting ready to put the dance together." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/basically-it-starts-with-four-months-of-training-93162/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.



