Hollywood is no stranger to seemingly ageless, extremely handsome men, but even among a crowded field of (checks notes) Paul Rudd, Keanu Reeves stands alone as the ultimate bastion of marbled movie-star cool. The longtime actor and noted nice guy is seemingly immune to the wills of Father Time, a fact both telegraphed through martial arts badassery in franchises like John Wick and a revered wardrobe that’s remained seemingly untouched (not to mention the pinnacle of effortless swag) since approximately 1990.
As if we needed a reminder, the actor’s superpower was on full display during a recent debut for the forthcoming film Good Fortune — a Seth Rogen-esque buddy comedy meets It’s a Wonderful Life directed by and starring Aziz Ansari (and which also happens to feature, surprise, Seth Rogen) — that features Keanu as the clueless angel Gabriel. (We have high hopes.)
In typical fashion, Reeves rocked up in the most casual of formalwear, decked out in a low-key three-button suit in a dashing shade of brown, held down by a crisp white dress shirt and black knit tie. For the unfamiliar, this is about as formal as he gets, and a combo he often returns to; here’s him wearing the same thing nearly a decade ago.
Much more notable than the suave suiting, however, was Keanu’s footwear choice: namely, a pair of beat-to-shit, tobacco-hued leather motorcycle boots, complete with what looked to be years of stains and scuffs. Or, as it turns out, actual years of stains and scuffs.
A serial offender of repeating fire ‘fits, Reeves has been spotted wearing the hiking-style moto boots — reportedly made by Saville Row denziens turned leatherwear artisans Magellan & Mulloy— for years now, long enough that he’s been papped multiple times in the same pair… and long enough to have had to swap out the laces at least once, from a rugged black to the more eye-catching safety orange.
Beyond being serious “true to this, not new to this” behavior, Keanu’s footwear choices are also an unexpected case study in the appeal of a hardwood patina; to their credit, the boots, while tastefully cooked, have held up immaculately, and, as is the case with virtually all shoes, look even cooler than they did fresh out of the box, especially when dressing down a crispy two-piece or laid-back suede blazer as Reeves so often does. (We love used apparel with character! And character actors with used apparel!)
You know what they say — nice guys finish last wear their kicks. And who knows? Maybe the secret to staying young is wearing really old boots.
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