Keanu Reeves Snagged One of The Matrix's Coolest Props for Himself

Sometimes these props are gifts, and sometimes an actor just pockets something that clearly outlived its practical use with the end of filming. But few actors managed to get something as iconic, as Keanu Reeves did after starring in The Matrix.

The Matrix was not merely a commercially successful action blockbuster, which propelled Reeves himself into the ranks of A-list stars.

To this day The Matrix continues to be highly culturally influential – perhaps even the most culturally influential movie of the recent decades.

It spawned not only a multimedia franchise and several sequels, but numerous highly persistent Internet memes as well.

In particular, the words "redpill/bluepill", became verbs in the modern Internet slang, describing enlightening your audience about real or alleged harsh truths of the world, or trying to discourage them from asking uncomfortable questions, respectively, all thanks to the iconic scene where Morpheus offers Neo two pills:

"You take the blue pill... the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill... you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes."

But did you know that the actual prop red pill, which Neo ultimately chose in that scene, became Keanu Reeves' personal memento?

In a recent Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything), which promoted Reeves' upcoming fourth John Wick movie (set to hit the theaters on March 24), he was asked whether he ever stolen anything from the sets.

And he answered, that he never did, but got a bunch of remarkable items as gifts:

"Not stolen… the watch and wedding ring from John Wick, a sword from 47 Ronin, and the first red pill that the Wachowski's ever gave me."

As the first and by far the most popular answer to his comment says:

"Kind of weird to think about a human being possessing THE red pill, considering how the term has become such a memetic part of internet culture."