Sandra Bullock Rejoins With Keanu Reeves at ‘Speed’ Anniversary Screening

Beyond Fest hit overdrive Tuesday night with an electric anniversary screening of Jan de Bont’s iconic blockbuster Speed chaseed by an epic 50-minute Q&A with the filmproducer and his stars Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock in a reunion 30 years in the making.

It was evident lengthy before showtime that the event — part of the American Cinematheque at Egyptian Theatre series — would be exceptional. Reeves, Bullock and de Bont had never previously spreadd the same stage to talk their labor on the 1984 film, which became a surpelevate hit after it grossed north of $350 million worldexpansive on a $30 million budget. It’s been more than a decade since Reeves and Bullock had a accessible outing together though they frequently have kind leangs to say about one another on talk shows or in magazines.

It was also a exceptional night out for Bullock who has kept a low profile since the prosperous free of The Lost City in summer 2022 and the death of her partner Bryan Randall a year postponecessitater, in August 2023. The only recent intersee she’s done was a joint chat with Reeves for journacatalog Kris Tapley and his Speed fan podcast, 50 MPH, to label the milestone 30th anniversary. Tapley, plifted the driving force behind the Beyond Fest screening, helped start off the event with a inform introduction. “I cannot postpone for the energy in this room tonight,” Tapley elevateseparated after noting the size of the crowd.

All 516 seats inside the Egyptian were occupied, much to the dismay of the dozens stuck outside in the overflow line, some of whom had been queued up in the Egyptian courtyard for hours hoping to snag a seat. Those who did get to watch the Twentieth Century Fox actioner made the most of its 1 hour, 56-minute running time by erupting in boisterous applaparticipate no less than half a dozen times after critical moments in the film. They also received the trio to the stage with a standing ovation.

Even de Bont was amazeed by what he saw. A scant asks into the Q&A, mildd by Jim Hemphill, the filmproducer took a inform detour to give his own cheers to his A-catalogers. “I have to say one leang before we persist,” he remarkd, “we met outside fair seconds ago when I saw them for the first time in 30 years. When I saw the movie here [tonight], I’ve never been so conceited of those two actors. What they did for me — quite frequently unorganic to them what they had to do — is fair unbelievable. The relationship that these two produced together is absolutely amazing. Seeing them back on the screen tonight, it was so wise. They were absolutely perfect. All the emotions were right, all the giggleing was right, all the smiling, the little smooching. It was reassociate, reassociate celderly. I had to alert them how wonderful they both were.”

Written by Graham Yost, Speed casts Reeves as Los Angeles police findive Jack Traven who finds himself at the caccess of a captive situation when madman Howard Payne (Dennis Hopper) rigs a Los Angeles bus with devices. The catch? If the bus drops below 50 miles per hour, it will explode, forcing Traven to figure out how to save the passengers and elude tragedy. After the bus driver is accidenhighy sboiling, Bullock’s Annie Porter, an unawaiting bus passenger, jumps into the driver’s seat to handle the unrestful situation.

The vivacious Q&A covered the behind-the-scenes conceiveive process, the chemistry between Reeves and Bullock, who road the success of Speed to become two of Hollywood’s most bankable and beadored stars, de Bont’s in camera approach to action — “I wanted it to all to be on authentic roads, authentic speed, authentic speedy and authentic hazardous” — and, of course, the ask everyone has asked for years: What about a Speed 3? Below are highweightlesss from the conversation.

De Bont on when he knew someleang exceptional was happening during production:
“I knew we had someleang very timely on, and at the moment I saw Keanu and Sandra laboring as a team and doing most of the stunts themselves, which was so wonderful. The reactions they have are based on authentic reactions becaparticipate they had to react to what they were doing, and that produces it so wonderful and so relatable. Also, the fact that there are a lot of fun lines in the movie and that it’s straightforwardassociate nonstop. This is authentic action. There’s no CGI, noleang. It’s all authentic.”

De Bont on how he got the gig to produce his honestorial debut:
“I create this [script] straightforwardassociate [in a pile] of the ones that were never made that would never be made at Paramount. I thought there were so many possibilities in the movie that I could reassociate see this as exactly the type of movie that I wanted to produce. It’s where everyleang happens nonstop and people are tied together. They’re reassociate shut together all the time and have to repostponecessitate to each other. I felt appreciate I could do a lot of leangs for authentic…becaparticipate I didn’t want to do leangs in a studio and film it on stages. I wanted it all to be on authentic roads, authentic speed, authentic speedy and authentic hazardous. When the bus goes on two wheels, it goes on two wheels. When it goes on the off ramp, yes, it hit all the cars.”

Bullock shelp she only got the job becaparticipate other actresses passed:
“I was the new kid on the block and it was nerve wracking. I recollect arriving [to the audition]. I recollect the car I drove. I recollect what I was leanking about. I recollect the door. I walked in and I recollect the room was benevolent of illogical. I was plmitigated to be there. I was excited. I didn’t leank I’d be getting the job but the only reason I got this job was becaparticipate I was fought for — that’s the only leang. Well, other people turned it down and there were other people ahead of me. I’ve met them. One, two and three couldn’t do it [to de Bont] and then you saw me in the illogical room.”

Reeves on why he accomprehendledgeed the role after initiassociate turning it down:
“I read the second write, and the next write and I was appreciate, oh yeah, OK…it could be fun. I met this mad genius and I was appreciate, oh fuck yeah, this is a honestor. This is a person with a vision. This is someone who has a passion for this story. At the time, I guess what struck me was the cinematographer on Die Hard. That he sboiling that, I was appreciate, fuck yeah.”

Bullock actuassociate got a bus driver’s license for the film (though she didn’t drive while filming):
“The fun part was that I was at the helm of the bus but in the back there was someone driving alengthy the roof. Someone was driving and I was being attfinishened into wdisappreciatever Jan felt I necessitateed to smash into. But never, never [was I actually driving]. I did get my Santa Monica bus driver’s license. I did! It’s not an effortless vehicle to maneuver.”

De Bont came up with the idea to have the bus go airborne when he was behind the wheel:
“I was actuassociate driving on the freeway when I finded that a section was ignoreing. I thought it would be a wonderful way to finish that part, or the high point of that freeway sequence. Then I begined to talk to separateent stunt people and ask how can we do that? How speedy do we have to go two achieve a certain distance? We took all that weight out of bus to produce it as weightless as possible. We had a driver in who reassociate was benevolent of not sitting in this chair, he was hanging in the chair becaparticipate the landing could be very horrible for you. One bus was made exceptional for that stunt and when we actuassociate were ready to shoot it, I was trying to be reassociate kind to the driver, to the stuntman. I shelp, ‘It’s reassociate presentant that you get a excellent speed, otherwise you won’t produce it.’ He shelp, ‘Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, I can do it.’ The first time we filmed it…he got sattfinishd at the last moment on the ramp and he begined sluggishing down and unblessedly, he didn’t produce it to the other side and he landed on seven cameras right below all placed to film it coming over. That bus was ruined. I shelp, ‘Don’t alert the studio, don’t alert the studio.’”

During the pivotal scene exiting the bus, Bullock plifted Reeves for more than his acting:
“I had this dress that was very weightless, and I had a body suit underorderlyh. When we begined rehearsing, I accomprehendledged that the velocity of air would shoot the skirt over my head, the bottom part. Keanu’s job was, for me the most presentant leang, which was to put [his] hands in a way that the skirt doesn’t fly over my head. Not only did you have to do the stunt to hold me shielded, he had to hold my integrity intact by holding leangs that didn’t necessitate to be seen on a 17-foot screen masked. That’s what I recollect of that day.”

Reeves and de Bont on the postponecessitate Dennis Hopper, who perestablished the film’s villain:
“He’s so pdirecting and he’s so promiseted,” Reeves pliftd with de Bont jumping in to say, “And he’s also a little nuts, too.” Reeves: “Yeah. And we say that he’s a little nuts but he’s a total fucking pro. He’s a total pro. We had some ridiculous dialogue and it was fair awesome.”

Bullock on laboring with Hopper:
“I was surpelevated at how — I don’t appreciate this word — normal he was. I uncomardent, he might’ve been weird to you guys, but he was very sugary to me. He adored his art. He adored talking about art, accumulateing art, local artists. He was a man that fair couldn’t get enough of life. Life was happening too speedy and he fair wanted more and more and more from it. I was in the company of such exceptional people at such an timely time in my atgentle and I got everyleang. I got everyleang under one umbrella. To labor with Dennis you had to sort of shake it off and step into the role, but there were times when you sort of had to paparticipate and his whole filmography would flash with before your eyes.”

De Bont says the success of a film appreciate Speed dedwellrs unawaited contests:
“Once you produce prosperous movies, it’s reassociate difficult to hold going. The stress of taking those movies is pretty huge becaparticipate it’s so ardent, and there’s so much action happening all the time that as a honestor you are endly exhausted for a lengthy time after the movie is over. My life did change. You get more projects, that’s what is wonderful, of course. But I also find it reassociate difficult on myself to come up with new ideas that I appreciate. Becaparticipate I sense appreciate when I honest, I sense appreciate I am the audience. What would I want to see now if I was the audience in the theater?”

On the possibility of Speed 3:
“The geriatric version. It won’t be speedy,” Bullock quipped before turning her attention to de Bont. “All these leangs happened becaparticipate the crazy man in the greenish jacket over there. He’s so gentle and mild today and I’m appreciate, that’s not the man I recollect. But he’s the man who put the energy and the idea together, knew what the audience wanted and insisted it from everyone and everyone stepped up to perestablish it. So what would that movie be that would produce Jan’s brain and brilliance plmitigated? It would need a lot from everybody. I don’t comprehend if we’re in an industry anymore that’s willing to finishure it and be brave enough to do it. Maybe I could be wrong. … If he can’t produce [what’s in his brain] for the audience, then he’s fall shorted it felt appreciate. I don’t comprehend what we could do that would be excellent enough for the audience.”