Keanu Reeves Walking in Slow Motion — Keanu Reeves walking through a blue-lit restaurant with hands raised in slow motion

Keanu Reeves Walking in Slow Motion

2019viral videoclassic

Published September 3, 2026

In 2019, a scene from the Netflix romantic comedy Always Be My Maybe featuring Keanu Reeves making a dramatic slow-motion entrance became an unexpected meme format. A Twitter account devoted to setting the clip to various songs launched days after the film's release, spawning a viral trend where the same footage somehow works with virtually any musical accompaniment.

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Overview

The format follows a simple formula: take the exact same slow-motion clip of Keanu Reeves walking into a restaurant from Always Be My Maybe and swap out the original "Sail" by Awolnation for any other song1. The joke is that no matter what music plays, from Tame Impala to Salt-N-Pepa to Billie Eilish, the footage always works. Reeves' confident stride and the scene's intentionally over-the-top cinematography make him look like he belongs in whatever genre the song suggests2.

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The remixes highlight how the scene was already self-aware. In the film, Reeves plays a fictionalized version of himself as the impossibly dreamy date of Ali Wong's character Sasha, designed to make Randall Park's character Marcus feel inadequate. The slow-motion entrance was meant to be ridiculous, and setting it to different music just amplifies that absurdity in new directions3. Bryan Adams' "Heaven" makes it feel like an 80s power ballad romance. Hilary Duff's "So Yesterday" turns it into a teen comedy. Nick Minaj's "Roman Holiday" gives it runway model energy1.

The trend became part of a broader moment of Keanu Reeves appreciation online. Throughout 2019, the actor enjoyed a wave of positive internet attention following the John Wick franchise's success and his generally wholesome public image1. This particular meme fed into that zeitgeist by giving fans a perfect, endlessly remixable clip to celebrate him with.

Origin & Background

Platform
Netflix / Twitter (viral spread)
Creator
@keanuwtm
Date
2019

The source clip comes from Always Be My Maybe, a Netflix romantic comedy released on May 31, 2019, starring Ali Wong and Randall Park3. Keanu Reeves appears as a cameo playing an exaggerated version of himself, serving as Sasha's date during a double dinner that puts romantic tension between the leads. His entrance, scored to "Sail" by Awolnation, was shot to be deliberately dramatic and comedic2.

That same day the film dropped, a Twitter account called @keanuwtm (Keanu Reeves Walking to Music) launched with the explicit purpose of setting the clip to different songs4. The first video featured Eddie Money's "Take Me Home Tonight"4. The account quickly picked up steam as users requested songs and the operator delivered, creating a mini-viral phenomenon within hours of the movie's release.

How It Spread

The @keanuwtm account rapidly gained attention on Twitter throughout the first few days of June 2019. On May 31st, it posted versions set to Shakira's "Whenever Wherever," Billie Eilish's "Bad Guy," and Salt-N-Pepa's "Whatta Man"4. By June 1st, one of its most popular edits featured Tame Impala's "The Less I Know the Better," gaining over 1,100 retweets and 2,900 likes3.

The trend attracted coverage from multiple media outlets. The Daily Dot published an article noting how the meme fit into the broader cultural moment of Keanu Reeves appreciation, pointing out how "every song fits the tone and makes it seem as if the actor is in a different movie each time"1. Mashable covered the account, highlighting edits set to Hilary Duff's "So Yesterday," Bryan Adams' "Heaven," and Berlin's "Take My Breath Away"2. Time also reported on the phenomenon3.

The format proved the scene's universal applicability. Whether the music was a stoner comedy soundtrack, a high school rom-com anthem, or a supermodel catwalk track, Reeves' slow-motion walk sold it1. The Daily Dot specifically noted that the Salt-N-Pepa version "fits perfectly" and that even Nicki Minaj's "Roman Holiday" worked, giving Reeves "a Naomi Campbell walk"1.

How to Use This Meme

To create a Keanu Reeves Walking in Slow Motion edit, you take the slow-motion entrance clip from Always Be My Maybe and replace the original "Sail" soundtrack with a song of your choosing. The format works best when the song choice creates an unexpected but somehow fitting genre mashup. Common conventions include using love ballads, hip-hop anthems, or recognizable pop hits from different eras. The humor comes from how Reeves' confident stride and the cinematic slow-motion treatment make any song seem like it was always meant to score his entrance.

Frequently Asked Questions