Much Ado About Keanu

A Critical Reeves Theory

Sezin Koehler

$49.99

Hardback

Forthcoming
Pre-Order now

QTY:

English

Chicago Review Press
01 July 2025

Films, movies & cinema; Film theory & criticism; Biography: arts & entertainment; Media studies

Thanks to his prolific movie career (seventy-eight movies as of 2023) and endearing real-life persona, Keanu Reeves has become the universal screen saver of pop culture-nobody can go a few days without some reference to Keanu or his movies popping up. But Reeves is much more than box office receipts and internet memes, and Much Ado About Keanu provides the deep dive into his art, identity, and ethnicity that this oft-misunderstood cultural icon deserves.

Despite the sometimes-mocking estimations of his acting skills-and his seven Razzie nominations-Keanu is one of the most thoughtful and talented performers of Generation X, and during his forty-year career he has made huge strides for Asian representation in spite of his identity often being whitewashed. Pop-culture sociologist and Reeves devotee Sezin Devi Koehler explores all of this, presenting insightful essays that critically examine Reeves's creative output from an interdisciplinary and intersectional perspective.

Those who code Reeves as white miss how his multiracial identity informs so many of his mainstream films, often subverting their most straightforward themes. Criticisms of his acting overlook the popularity and the reach of his work. Koehler's essays challenge how audiences engage with Keanu's movies, highlighting the importance of Keanu as a multitalented artist and trailblazer, not only for racial representation but for intersectional, queer, and feminist readings of cinema as well.

Much Ado About Keanuconnects existing media studies around various themes in Reeves's films-particularly Asian and Indigenous representation, gender studies, philosophy, technology, and sexuality studies-in a ""critical Reeves theory"" sure to engage not just fans but all of us who live in Keanu's world.

By: Sezin Koehler
Imprint: Chicago Review Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 228mm, Width: 152mm,
ISBN: 9780913705223
ISBN 10: 0913705225
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 01 July 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Sezin Devi Koehler is a pop-culture writer whose work has been featured in Bitch magazine both in print and online, Looper, Black Girl Nerds, Certified Forgotten, Teen Vogue, Shudder's The Bite, Horror Homeroom, Crooked Marquee,Scalawaymagazine, and many others. She currently writes for Entertainment Weekly!'s movies section, and has published two indie horror novels.

Reviews for Much Ado About Keanu: A Critical Reeves Theory

""The films of Keanu Reeves and his wholly unique and widely adored broader star persona provide Sezin Devi Koehler the perfect subject matter for this probing celebration of one the greatest screen actors of our time and his enduring impact on our lives in very real, meaningful ways. More than mere fandom, Much Ado About Keanu is a rigorous, exciting and contagious masterclass in pop cultural engagement as praxis."" --Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, author of 1000 Women in Horror, 1898-2018