Keanu Reeves and Sofia Coppola are returning to their respective career roots.
Twenty years after Coppola directed her breakout 2003 film “Lost in Translation” in Tokyo, the filmmaker returns to Japan with a short film for the Suntory Whisky Anniversary Tribute. Suntory Whiskey has become cinematically synonymous with “Lost in Translation” for Bill Murray’s quip, “For relaxing times, make it Suntory Time,” as his character is a fading-out actor sent to Tokyo to hawk the brand.
Actor Reeves, who previously starred in a 1990s Suntory ad, leads the commercial, a montage that celebrates 100 years of the iconic liquor brand The House of Suntory.
The ad shows Reeves walking through nightlife in Japan before ducking into a nondescript bar and ordering a glass of Suntory on the rocks as a vinyl record plays. The ad is set to Joan Jett and the Blackhearts’ cover of “Crimson and Clover.”
“It was cool [to get] a chance to work with Sofia Coppola and to work with [her brother] Roman Coppola on a kind of short commercial and then a docu-series,” Reeves told People magazine of the project. “It was a really special opportunity.”
Reeves and Sofia Coppola briefly dated after meeting during the making of “Bram Stoker’s Dracula,” which her father Francis Ford Coppola directed in 1992.
The “John Wick: Chapter 4” actor added, “It was wonderful, really wonderful. It was extraordinary to have the opportunity to spend time with people from Suntory, in terms of going to the founding distillery Yamazaki, then going and just meeting master blenders and all the craftspeople. I got to meet some of the artisans, Kabuki actors, calligraphists, being an outsider and getting to spend time with people and talk about their passion and their craft.”
Up next from Coppola is the Priscilla and Elvis Presley biopic “Priscilla” starring Cailee Spaeney and Jacob Elordi. Meanwhile, Reeves is attached to Jonah Hill’s Apple Original film “Outcome” which follows a damaged Hollywood actor who must dive into the dark depths of his past to confront his demons and make amends after he is extorted with a mysterious video clip resurfaces. Reeves is additionally set to star in Aziz Ansari’s “Good Fortune” alongside Seth Rogen; however, production has been halted due to the ongoing WGA strike.
