‘House of the Dragon’ Star Matt Smith Reacts to Keanu Reeves Watching Morbius

Matt Smith had a humorous and candid response after discovering that Keanu Reeves was spotted watching ‘Morbius’ during a flight.

This amusing anecdote surfaced during Smith’s guest appearance on Brittany Broski’s Royal Court podcast, which aired on Wednesday. Broski brought up the viral image of Reeves enjoying the 2022 superhero film on a plane, prompting Smith to express his admiration for the actor.

“I love Keanu Reeves,” Smith exclaimed. “He’s like, you know, like you get like a man, mate. Keanu Reeves, what a movie star. And [he] just looks like an angel, you know what I mean? Like if you were to get a guardian angel in life, please God, let it be Keanu Reeves.” Broski concurred, referring to the ‘John Wick’ star as “the movie star.”

Smith then reminisced about his fondness for Reeves’ films from the 1990s. “I genuinely think that that period of movies, that sort of ’90s period of films I just love, from ‘Point Break’ onwards. I just think he’s the best.” While Smith clearly holds Reeves in high regard, he couldn’t help but make a light-hearted joke about the film choice. “Jesus Christ. My god. He must have really gone through the BA library to get to that,” he remarked, referencing the airline’s movie selection.

When Broski jested that Reeves might have been intoxicated, Smith laughed and responded, “Having a moment. He’s on the Valium or something.” He quickly added, “No, but what a legend. I love Keanu Reeves, I just want to make that really clear.” And when Broski inquired about his own in-flight viewing preferences, Smith delivered the punchline: “Not f—ing Morbius.”

‘Morbius’ has become one of the internet’s most talked-about movie memes. The film starred Jared Leto as Dr. Michael Morbius, a scientist who transforms into a vampire-like antihero. Smith portrayed Milo, his childhood friend. Released in 2022, the movie garnered poor reviews from critics and a lackluster audience score, earning approximately $167 million worldwide against a reported $75 million budget.

What made the film notorious was not its box office performance, but the bizarre online reaction it sparked. Following its release, social media users began crafting jokes that treated ‘Morbius’ as if it were a monumental cultural event. People shared fake quotes, invented scenes, and circulated the fictitious catchphrase “It’s Morbin’ Time,” despite that line never appearing in the film.

The joke gained such traction that Sony re-released ‘Morbius’ in theaters, seemingly hoping the online buzz would translate into ticket sales. Instead, the film performed poorly during its second run, further amplifying the meme.

For many, ‘Morbius’ became a representation of how internet humor can evolve into a phenomenon of its own. The movie itself may not have been widely embraced, but the surrounding memes gained more fame than the film itself.

Smith has previously addressed the film’s unfavorable reception. In an interview with Rolling Stone U.K., he stated, “Yeah, it was thrown under the bus. But you just have to roll with it. What else are you gonna do? It’s a film, at the end of the day, we’re not saving lives. For whatever reason, it didn’t quite work out and… It is what it is.”

Thanks to Keanu Reeves and this podcast discussion, ‘Morbius’ has once again found itself in the limelight.

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