The Only Prop Keanu Reeves Ever Took From The Matrix Sets

After spending a few years around screens big and small, upstart actor Keanu Reeves found his first big hit in the form of "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure." The 1989 comedy gave Reeves a chance to show off his humorous side in a leading role, and both fans and critics responded quite positively. As a result, his stock in Hollywood began to rise, landing him gigs in high-profile projects like "Point Break," "My Own Private Idaho," and "Speed," among others. These experiences eventually brought him to "The Matrix" — altering the course of his life and career forever.

Lilly and Lana Wachowski's 1999 sci-fi thriller broke the mold in all of the best ways, redefining the traditional action movie and infusing blockbuster presentation with philosophical themes. At the heart of it all stood Keanu Reeves as Neo: a computer whiz named Thomas Anderson who discovers his true potential once Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) and his team unplug him from the Matrix program. His performance cemented his legacy as one of Hollywood's icons, allowing him to further his already stellar career in the years that followed.

Given just how massive "The Matrix" turned out to be, both culturally and in terms of Keanu Reeves' career, it should come as no surprise that the legendary actor took home one single prop from the set to commemorate his experience working on it.

It goes without saying that Neo, and by extension, Keanu Reeves, is the centerpiece of the "Matrix" franchise. Not only was he the star of the show in the 1999 film, but he also helmed its two theatrical sequels from 2003 — "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions" — and will once again take the spotlight for 2021's "The Matrix Resurrections." Additionally, Neo made a brief cameo in the animated anthology "The Animatrix" and even got his own video game titled "The Matrix: Path of Neo." So, what did Reeves take home to commemorate this rich legacy?

"I have a Nebuchadnezzar plaque from the ship, and I think that's it," Reeves revealed in an interview with BBC Radio 1 (via YouTube) from December 17. For those who don't recall, the Nebuchadnezzar, also called "The Neb," was the hovercraft that Morpheus and his team frequented whenever they'd leave the human settlement of Zion. It's where they first met Neo once out of his Machine-induced slumber and introduced him to the war-torn Earth that lay beyond the simulation. Sadly, it was destroyed by the end of "The Matrix Reloaded," as Morpheus watched on in sorrow.

Though not the item one would imagine Keanu Reeves grabbed from the "Matrix" set, there's no denying that the Nebuchadnezzar plaque is a cool trinket to keep around.