Coping with grief

On 31 October 1993 – when 'Speed' was in the middle of production – Keanu Reeves' good friend River Phoenix passed away, which deeply affected the actor.

He recalled: "All I can say is that I have never felt a thing like that before in my life. I was very sad, and something beyond sad. I don't know what it is, just that you sob for hours."

In an effort to relieve some of the production stress on Keanu, director Jan de Bont changed the filming schedule so that the actor could tackle easier scenes first.

Tragically, Keanu became very quiet for the rest of the production as he struggled to cope with the loss of his dear friend.