Keanu Reeves & Alex Winter (Extended) | No Sur-Prize

Summary

The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert

Episode: Keanu Reeves & Alex Winter (Extended) | No Sur-Prize

Date: October 14, 2025

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Episode Overview

This extended episode of The Late Show Pod Show sees Stephen Colbert in conversation with Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter, best known for their iconic roles as Bill and Ted, who are currently co-starring in a new Broadway production of Waiting for Godot. The episode also pays warm tribute to the late Diane Keaton with highlights from an earlier interview. Throughout, the conversation blends deep artistic insight with Colbert's trademark wit, offering a vibrant exploration of acting, friendship, existential theater, and humorous behind-the-scenes stories.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter on Broadway

[24:07 – 38:22]

• Their Production:

  • Reeves and Winter are performing in Waiting for Godot at the Hudson Theater on Broadway, marking Reeves’ Broadway debut.
  • Colbert quizzes them on the correct pronunciation of "Godot" (Guh-DOE vs. Guh-DOH), playfully noting Americans usually say "Godot."
    • Alex Winter: "The play was written by an Irishman in French." [25:17]

• First Meeting:

  • The actors recount their first meeting during the audition for Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.
    • Keanu Reeves: "I walked in, said, hey, what's up?" [26:13]
    • Alex Winter: "Motorcycle helmet. Motorcycle helmet." [26:17]
  • They connected instantly over shared interests in motorcycles, music, literature, and their mutual background in theater.

• The Rhythm of Acting Together:

  • They liken their partnership to a rhythm section: “We were both playing the same instrument, which isn’t how a rhythm section is supposed to work.” [27:06, Alex Winter]
  • They’d often “jam” on bass guitars together after filming, which reinforced their performance chemistry.

• Why Do Godot Now?

  • Reeves: Inspired during jet-lagged musings in London, FaceTimed Winter to propose the idea.
    • Keanu Reeves: "Waiting for Godot with Alex. And I went, huh?" [27:47]
    • Alex Winter: "We'd been trying to find something to do together that wasn't Bill and Ted." [28:30]
  • Both wanted a substantial acting challenge; Winters acknowledges, "I knew what it entailed, though, was gonna be a monster." [28:30]

• The Meaning of the Play:

  • Keanu Reeves: "If Hamlet is to be or not to be, that is the question... Beckett in Waiting for Godot says, that is not the question. What are we doing here? That is the question." [29:50]
  • The play tackles heavy themes: existence, time, friendship, faith, power, and mortality.
    • Alex Winter: "You end up playing all of life in the course of two hours, which is kind of a trip…" [30:46]
  • They reflect on aging into their roles—both nearly 60 as they take the stage.

• Set Design Interpretations:

  • The set’s abstract design invites multiple interpretations: “the eye, the tunnel, the vortex, the subwoofer, the habitrail, the lens, the sphincter…” [31:59–32:19]
  • Colbert: "It looks like the universe or God or providence, that sort of thing. Yeah, it looms, that's for sure." [32:30]

• Pre-Show Rituals and Stage Nerves:

  • Both actors admit to “butterflies” before each show.
    • Colbert: "Do you get that every night?"
    • Keanu Reeves: "Every night, yes." [33:48]
  • Rituals include face-slapping for alertness (Colbert & Reeves) and prayers before each act (Winter).

2. Careers Beyond Broadway

[35:16 – 38:41]

• Alex Winter’s Film:
  • Adulthood — a black comedy directed by Winter about "the impossibility of adulthood in our current society" [35:35]
• Keanu Reeves’ Film:
  • Good Fortune — Reeves fractured his kneecap ("like a potato chip" [36:36]) during production, despite his extensive physical work in prior action movies.
    • "It made a lot of people laugh. Aw." [37:43, Keanu Reeves]
    • Both laugh about the irony: "You're John Wick and you just..." [37:55, Reeves]
• Work Ethic:
  • Even after the injury, Reeves continued filming. Winter jokes about his tenacity.

3. Remembrance: Diane Keaton

[17:15 – 22:47] (Retrospective Segment)

• Colbert pays tribute to Diane Keaton, sharing highlights of a chaotic and comedic earlier interview (originally from The Colbert Report era).
  • The conversation is playful, sometimes combative:
    • Diane Keaton: "I just want you to know I won't be voting for you… and I don't want to see your butt naked ass." [17:55]
  • Keaton expresses loving memories about her mother and discusses her memoir Then Again.
  • The segment ends with Colbert and Keaton trading jokes about who is the better sidekick and the perils of running for president.
• At the end of the episode, Keanu shares memories of working with Keaton on Something's Gotta Give:
  • Keanu Reeves: "It was Diane and Jack Nicholson at a table in a restaurant in Paris. Just watching those two legends... insult each other with love. Beautiful." [39:17]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Working Together and Friendship:
  • "To be in that every night and to say those words, but to do that with a very close friend is pretty extraordinary."
    — Alex Winter [31:31]
• On Beckett’s Philosophy:
  • "If Hamlet is to be or not to be... Beckett... says, that is not the question. What are we doing here? That is the question."
    — Keanu Reeves [29:50]
• On Pre-Show Rituals:
  • "I know I’ve done it hard enough if I regret having done it… great, because then I’m awake."
    — Stephen Colbert, on slapping himself before a show [33:57]
  • "I have little prayers that I always do. Before each act… And I get very freaked out if I miss one of those."
    — Alex Winter [34:10]
• On Set Design:
  • "People see a lot of different things in the set here. …the eye, the tunnel, the vortex, the subwoofer, the habitrail…"
    — Keanu Reeves & Alex Winter [31:59–32:16]
• On Comedy vs. Action:
  • "Comedy’s hard, right?... I fractured my patella."
    — Keanu Reeves [36:24, 36:35]

Humorous Exchanges

• On Bill & Ted Origins:
  • "Motorcycle helmet. Motorcycle helmet."
    — Alex Winter [26:17]
• On Waiting for Godot:
  • "Are you guys being fancy? …Are you fancy and are you schmancy?"
    — Stephen Colbert [24:59]
• On Pre-Show Rituals:
  • "Sounds like you’re going out on a date."
    — Stephen Colbert, on Keanu's ritual [34:35]

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Important Timestamps

• [24:07] — Keanu Reeves & Alex Winter segment begins
• [25:17] — On Godot’s history and pronunciation
• [26:04] — First meeting and audition memories
• [27:47] — The genesis of their Godot collaboration
• [29:50] — Keanu’s explanation of Beckett's core question
• [31:31] — Acting the play with a lifelong friend
• [31:59] — Describing interpretations of the set design
• [33:38] — Butterflies and pre-show rituals
• [35:16] — Discussion of new films: Adulthood and Good Fortune
• [36:35] — Keanu’s kneecap injury story
• [39:17] — Keanu recalls working with Diane Keaton

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Tone & Language

The episode balances heartfelt reflection and philosophical discussion with playful, self-deprecating humor and rapid-fire banter—true to Colbert’s late-night tone. The rapport between the three is easy, with warmth and laughter underpinning even deeper topics, creating a lively yet intimate atmosphere.

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Takeaways for Listeners

• Art and Friendship: Reeves and Winter’s journey from cult movie icons to Broadway brings themes of friendship, growth, and artistic challenge full circle.
• Existential Comedy: Waiting for Godot explores profound questions of existence, interpreted with humor and humanity by seasoned friends.
• Stage vs Screen: Both actors bring unique perspectives from film back to theater, highlighting the enduring craft of live performance.
• Tribute to Legends: The Diane Keaton segment is both comic and moving, underscoring the show’s reverence for performance icons and the joy of personal connection.

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Recommended for anyone interested in acting, theater, comedy, and the enduring power of true friendship both on and off the stage.

Transcript

[Stephen Colbert]

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[Stephen Colbert]

Exactly. I mean, even out of the shell, it's still a nut.

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[Stephen Colbert]

You. I'm not disparaging the nut. I'm describing the nut. Don't disparage any flavors.

[Alex Winter]

I'm not.

[Stephen Colbert]

I am celebrating the pistachio right now. I'm on board. I love pistachios.

[Keanu Reeves]

I love.

[Stephen Colbert]

I love crushed pistachio. Like a pistachio crusted trout. Oh, unbelievable. Instead of a trout amandine, a trout pistachio. Fantastic. Enough butter? Who cares?

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[Stephen Colbert]

And I love pistachio ice cream.

[Alex Winter]

Have you had the sea salt and vinegar? Wonderful pistachio.

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[Alex Winter]

I get em.

[Stephen Colbert]

I didn't even know I get them before the softball games. But that's. You see, it's been a while since I've been the spokesman for wonderful pistachios. I didn't realize we'd achieved new pistachio technology.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah. Yeah.

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[Stephen Colbert]

Wonderful pistachios has every snack style covered. Right now. There's an obsession with jalapeno lime. There is an obsession session. It's almost a disorder. It's spicy, it's zesty. It's basically a flavor roller coaster in a nut. Snacking on the go. Grab a bag of no shells. Feeling contemplative and want to work for it a little. So earning it, they're saying if you want to earn your nut, crack open those in shell beauties. Either way, it's snacking like a champ. So the next time hunger strikes, don't hold back. Unless it's a hunger strike. And Then it's important that you do. Because whatever you're doing that for, I'm sure it's a worthwhile cause. Snack like you mean it with wonderful pistachios. Visit wonderfulpistachios.com to learn more.

[Alex Winter]

That was a wonderful.

[Stephen Colbert]

I wonder what more there is to learn. We just told them so much. We just told them so much about pistachios. But evidently there's a whole other world. There's an unexplored vista. They got a bunch of flavors.

[Alex Winter]

They got dill pickle, jalapeno lime, as we learned, smoky barbecue.

[Stephen Colbert]

There's a lot of different flavors. Wow. And I would not disparage any of them.

[Alex Winter]

No, no, no.

[Stephen Colbert]

Bring it on. Nothing bad to say. Nut me, nut. Nut me with nut meat.

[Alex Winter]

We're nut.

[Stephen Colbert]

No, we got nothing but nut. Nutty, nutty, nutty, nutty. Talk about, talk about, talk about, talk about nutty. Good. Hey, Ryan Reynolds here for Mint Mobile. Now, I don't know if you've heard, but Mint's Premium Wireless is $15 a month. But I'd like to offer one other perk. We have no stores. That means no small talk. Crazy weather we're having. No, it's not. It's just weather. It is an introvert's dream. Give it a [e-mail] Switch upfront payment.

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[Stephen Colbert]

Taxes and fees extra. See mintmobile.com welcome one and all, ladies and gentlemen. Oh my friends, welcome, welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the Late Show. I'm your host, Stephen Colbert. You know what, I gotta tell you, I just. You know what, I feel exactly the same way. I'm so happy to be back and seeing everybody. Show was on break last week. I went overseas, you know, thought about, hey, get away from the news for a bit. Also gave me a chance to test the flight part of Fight or Flight. And turns out they talk about us over there too. It's like going over to the neighbor's house to avoid the dysfunctional family dynamics over there. You can still hear the screaming. It's actually a little more disturbing hearing it through all that plywood. Now, one part of my little test was successful because I did miss some of the news last week. So when I got back this morning, I asked my crack research team to give me a list of some of the things that happened while I was away. And it's doozy. It's less. We didn't Start the fire and more. Everything's on fire. Here's a partial list of what I the government shutdown is headed into its third week. Trump fired more than 4,000 federal workers. The DOJ charged New York Attorney General Letitia James with fraud. After Trump's pressure campaign, Trump sent troops to Chicago and Portland and is threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act. Trump announced a whopping 100% new tariff on China, which caused the stock market to have its worst day in six months. And Taylor Swift dropped her new album, the Life of a Showgirl, to mirror. Well, those reviewers are just jealous of her talent. And of Travis Kelce's majestic redwood. Yes, yes, a sequoia. It is nearly 2,000 years old. I hear it has its own ecosystem. There's protesters up in the branches to keep it from being cut down. But there is some good news out there, because today, thanks to Trump's newly brokered ceasefire in Gaza, all living Israeli hostages and almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners have been released. Okay, it's important. Credit where credit is due. Donald Trump did something good. Are we still canceled? You sure? I tried. I tried. It's kind of surprising to see him do something good. It reminds me of, you know, in the Empire Strikes Back, when Darth Vader revealed this shocking secret.

[Keanu Reeves]

Luke, I am an organ donor. Hooray.

[Stephen Colbert]

Despite the deal. Despite the deal, on Friday, in a truly foreseeable turn of events, Trump did not receive the Nobel Peace Prize. How dare you. Nobel committee. The man is a paragon of peace. He walks in the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King. After all, who can forget what Nelson Mandela famously declared upon leaving prison. Fat, talentless Rosie o' Donnell should go back to Ireland. Sounded better with the accent. After losing his campaign for the thing you don't campaign for, Trump said he didn't do the peace deal for the Nobel. And the White House communications director Steven Cheung agreed, saying President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars and saving lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian. No, he has the heart of a humanitarian. We removed that heart from one of the detainees in. He keeps it in the Oval Office next to the Diet Coke button in a little bowl. On his flight over to Israel, Trump was asked by Fox News whether the ceasefire he brokered might help him in the afterlife. I don't think there's anything going to get me in heaven. I agree with Donald Trump still cancelled. While Trump tries to bring peace to the Middle east, he's trying just as hard to bring war to the Midwest. And I personally, I'M horrified to see how he. On my old stomping grounds, Chicago, Illinois, where I lived for over a decade, ice. ICE has been terrorizing communities in the Windy City, going door to door in front of elementary schools, arresting immigrants, legal or otherwise, arresting US Citizens without any due process, tear gassing journalists who are merely reporting on what they're doing. All of which I know sounds bad. But before you judge them, keep in mind they also shot a pastor in the head with pepper balls, which kind of makes you nostalgic for the earlier part. Now, to protect ICE in their vital mission of generously seasoning our nation's clergy, Trump ordered the National Guard to Chicago and Portland, despite the fact that the crime rate in both cities has gone down. But according to the president. Nuh. Portland, Oregon. I mean, every time I look at that place, the place is burning down. There's fires all over the place. When a store owner. There are very few of them left. But when a store owner rebuilds a.

[Alex Winter]

Store, they build it out of plywood. And they don't put up storefronts anymore.

[Stephen Colbert]

They just put wood up. It's very sad. It's very sad. It's just wood. I saw on the papers one poor businesswoman, Lucy Van Pelt, had to set up a wooden psychiatric office right there on the sidewalk. She charges. What's she charged? She charges like 5 cents for help she can't make. She can't make a living doing that. You can't make that. And let me tell you, all of her patients. Her patients. One of them is an 8 year old kid already bald as a cue ball. Other one sucks his thumb.

[Keanu Reeves]

Good grief.

[Stephen Colbert]

Last week, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem went. Okay, Kristi Noem went into the. Oh yeah, hold on, we only have an hour long show. She went into the heart of the Portland war zone. Bravely standing on a rooftop surrounded by troops to survey the carnage. Here's what she. Secretary, do you have a message to the protesters? Especially the man in the chicken outfit? Yes, yes, yes. She does that message. You should see what I do to dogs. Yeah, I agree. Not great. That terrorist chicken is not alone, folks. Anti ice protests in Portland have also featured dancing dinosaurs, unicorns, sharks, and a whole lot of anti ice frogs. Thank you. Thank you for your service. Inflatable heroes. Not only are you defending democracy, you're saving party city, but it turns out federal forces are hopping mad about these riveting rioters in Portland. Ice pepper sprayed one right in the fan hole. That inflatable frog brigade is risking all to protect our freedoms. It's like when we stormed the beaches of Normandy with the first division of floppy tube men. If that was the footage Spielberg didn't use, wasn't it? If they think Portland's bad, ice is not ready for the protesters here in New York City in just. Yes, in just over one month. There's already plans for a major demonstration right down Central park west with extremists like Spiderman, spongebob, and a dangerous immigrant known as Dora the Explorer. Watch out, boots. Getting back to the shutdown. Normally during a shutdown, they furlough the federal employees and they give back pay when the shutdown ends. That's how it's always gone. But things aren't normal anymore. This time, Trump's threatening to withhold back pay and do mass firings. And on Friday, the White House announced layoffs of 4,100 federal employees from all over the government, including 466 in the Department of Education. Look, look, look. Actually, this one's fine. Kids don't need education. They can learn lessons the way God intended from older cousins with fireworks and a Playboy stashed under a log out in the forest. How I learned now, some federal workers have not been fired, just sent home. Over at the epa, the authorities who oversee the safety of our drinking water were told not to come to work until the government reopens. Which is why, just to be safe, been drinking only bourbon. Oh wait, this is the water now. We got a great show for you tonight.

[Alex Winter]

More Late Show Pod show after this.

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[Stephen Colbert]

@Blinds.Com, it's not just about window treatments. It's about you. Your style, your space, your way. Whether you DIY or want the pros to handle it all, you'll have the confidence of knowing it's done right. From free expert design help to our 100% satisfaction guarantee, everything we do is made to fit your life and your Windows. [e-mail], the only thing we treat better than Windows, visit blinds.com now for up to 45% off with minimum purchase plus a professional measure at no cost. Rules and restrictions apply. This weekend, America lost one of our most talented, original, and effortlessly funny actors, Diane Keaton. I, a lifelong fan, I have loved Dan Keaton ever since my mother made me walk out of Annie hall when I was 11. And in 2017, in 2012, my Colbert Report alter ego at the old show had the honor of attempting to interview this wonderful woman about her memoir that she apparently had no interest in talking about. It was so charmingly chaotic and one of my favorite interviews I have ever had the privilege of doing. And because, for reasons that are still unclear to me, the corporation has taken down all of my old show. In honor of Ms. Keaton, I thought I would share it with you tonight here. Ms. Keaton, thank you so much for coming on. Lovely to meet you.

[Diane Keaton]

It's lovely to meet you.

[Stephen Colbert]

I'm a big.

[Diane Keaton]

Can I ask you something?

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes, ma'.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Am.

[Diane Keaton]

Are you still running for president?

[Stephen Colbert]

Always thinking about it. You are, but you can never say never.

[Diane Keaton]

You weren't at the Correspondent's Dinner, I noticed.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, no, no, no. I haven't been on the Correspondents Dinner since they alerted security.

[Diane Keaton]

Oh, they alerted security about six years ago, yes.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Oh, why?

[Stephen Colbert]

I performed you.

[Diane Keaton]

Were you clothed?

[Stephen Colbert]

I was clothed.

[Diane Keaton]

Were you wearing clothes?

[Stephen Colbert]

I was clothed. So they knew I wasn't clothed because I heard, yeah, you're not allowed. You're not allowed to even maybe have a gun around the President. And these days that means buck naked is the only way to be sure. So I might run. I might run.

[Diane Keaton]

Well, yeah. I just want you to know I won't be voting for you. I just, you know, I really.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, that's a long setup to break my heart. That's a long. You don't really care how much you've hurt me.

[Diane Keaton]

I don't care how I hurt you at all. And I don't want to see your butt naked ass.

[Stephen Colbert]

I never offered. Yeah, I never offered. Crawford, you've misinterpreted that hug backstage.

[Diane Keaton]

That was a little tricky.

[Stephen Colbert]

It was. It was.

[Diane Keaton]

It was a little too tight. You pushed me.

[Stephen Colbert]

My butt was too tight or the.

[Diane Keaton]

You did, and I'm bringing you up on charges.

[Stephen Colbert]

You are? Yes, I am. Wonderful.

[Diane Keaton]

I really mean it.

[Stephen Colbert]

The book is called.

[Diane Keaton]

Careful.

[Stephen Colbert]

The book is called. Then again. Okay. Now you're an actress, right? Now you're an actress. You're a fan. We can. We don't have to. We can talk about anything. You want my book. I mean, we could talk about your.

[Diane Keaton]

Book because that's why I'm here.

[Stephen Colbert]

You're the one who started in on my bus.

[Diane Keaton]

Look, I don't really. It's the paperback version, and it's coming out tomorrow.

[Stephen Colbert]

Really?

[Diane Keaton]

Mr. Colbert?

[Stephen Colbert]

Wow. That is so. Wow. Wow to you, too. It was really wonderful. It's really wonderful that it's in paperback. It'll make it so much easier to pulp. It won't gum up the gears. In this book. In this, you don't just talk about yourself. You talk about your mom a lot. Oh, yeah.

[Diane Keaton]

Well, do I have to get serious?

[Stephen Colbert]

No, you don't have to get serious at all.

[Diane Keaton]

I did love my mother, who.

[Stephen Colbert]

You know what? That's brave of you to admit that. It takes real courage to say that you loved your mother. But let me ask you, did your mother love you? Did your mother love you? Did your mother want you to be an actress?

[Diane Keaton]

You're hurting my feelings. I'm gonna cry.

[Stephen Colbert]

I'll make news. Colbert sexually accosts Keaton tears film at 11. Why did your mother want you to be an actress?

[Diane Keaton]

Now you know why I wouldn't vote for you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Because.

[Diane Keaton]

Because you're a sexual pervert.

[Stephen Colbert]

How do you know? How do you know what you're imagining I was doing was in any way perverted? Maybe it was like, you know, missionary position, lights on, and a handshake at the end. Maybe it was totally unperverted. Maybe it was, you know. Maybe it was Mormon in its sanctity.

[Diane Keaton]

Don't go there. Don't go there.

[Stephen Colbert]

So is there any part of this book you'd like to discuss.

[Diane Keaton]

Or did.

[Stephen Colbert]

It get published by accident? Oh, no. And you're trying to bury all the possible information and you're here to try to snatch back the advance copy you sent us? Is there some reason you don't wish to speak about this book, Ms. Keaton?

[Diane Keaton]

I do want to.

[Stephen Colbert]

The thing that bothers me about the book, if you don't mind me saying that.

[Diane Keaton]

No, I don't mind.

[Stephen Colbert]

Is that you. You Read your mother's diaries in preparation for reading this book. Did that humanize your mother for you? Because our mothers are, you know, our parents are bigger than life.

[Diane Keaton]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

Did that humanize? See, I don't approve of that. Why would you want your parents to become human?

[Diane Keaton]

That's rough on me. You know, that's a tough question. Why would I want them to be human?

[Stephen Colbert]

Why do you want. Because I want my parents to be godlike. Cause then, as their son, I'm a demon. Were there things that you learned that you didn't want to learn about your mother in reading her diaries?

[Diane Keaton]

Like what?

[Stephen Colbert]

It's your mother.

[Diane Keaton]

I mean, no, actually, I did want to say one thing.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, please.

[Diane Keaton]

This is the paperback version of Then Again, and it's coming out in the stores tomorrow.

[Stephen Colbert]

We're definitely going to hit that. No, we put a big picture of it and everything and I'm going to shill for it super hard at the end of the interview. But before, but before I am going to encourage my viewers to buy the book, you have to say one thing about it.

[Keanu Reeves]

So.

[Stephen Colbert]

So pick one. You want to read. You want to read like the Library of Congress number or something out of the front. So, Diane, I want to thank you for coming.

[Diane Keaton]

Do you think I'm a good sidekick?

[Alex Winter]

Maybe?

[Stephen Colbert]

Absolutely.

[Diane Keaton]

Thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Are you looking for a gig? Don't get up. Oh, please don't leave. Don't leave. Because you can't leave. You can't leave until the cameras go off. Oh, same. Well, ladies and gentlemen. Ladies and gentlemen.

[Diane Keaton]

Just a cold bear.

[Stephen Colbert]

I want to thank. I want to thank Diane. I want to thank Diane Keaton. I want to thank Diane Keaton for coming.

[Diane Keaton]

I'm bringing you all the charges.

[Stephen Colbert]

As well you should. We're going to make out as soon as the cameras go off.

[Keanu Reeves]

Thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Ladies and gentlemen, Diane Keaton. Thank you, Mr. Chris Keaton. We'll be right back with Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter, everybody. Abercrombie kids knows how to make outfitting easy. Mix and match sets are their ultimate outfit hack for fall. Their sweatshirts and sweatpants are super cozy and they always have the cutest colors and patterns. Shop fall's easiest outfit at Abercrombie Kids in the app online and in stores.

[Alex Winter]

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[Stephen Colbert]

My fellow Americans, my next guests tonight are currently co starring in a new Broadway production of Waiting. You know them best as Bill and Ted, but please welcome back to the Late Show, Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves. There you go. So nice to have you guys here.

[Alex Winter]

Thank you. Thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Thanks for making the trip up from the Hudson theater up here to the Ed Sullivan to join us on a rare night off.

[Alex Winter]

Yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

Because you guys are doing eight shows a week, right?

[Alex Winter]

We are, yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

For Waiting for Godot on Broadway. Never done it. Kind of jealous. Love the play. Let's start with how some might be surprised that it's pronounced Godot. Instead of. Most people in America, they think of Godot.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

So are you guys being fancy? Are we being fancy? Are you fancy and are you schmancy?

[Keanu Reeves]

If that's fancy and schmancy, what's the other one?

[Stephen Colbert]

Godot.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah. Down home. Heartland.

[Stephen Colbert]

Just downholed American heartland. Existential dread. There you go. Right.

[Alex Winter]

Well, the play was written by an Irishman in French.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, there you go. Right, There you go.

[Alex Winter]

But for us, it wasn't really. It was kind of almost mundane. There was a lot of rhyming in the play.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes.

[Alex Winter]

And Godot works much better with the other names of the characters that are all rhymed with Pozzo. Godo. And he's constantly confusing gado for pazzo. I said pazzo. No, you said gato. No, you said gato. It doesn't work if you said pazzo. No, you said Godot. What?

[Stephen Colbert]

You've been linked, obviously in the public's mind since the 1989 release right there of Dylan Ty. Excellent adventure. First of all, I understand you guys met in the audition process.

[Alex Winter]

Process.

[Stephen Colbert]

Tell me about meeting each other for the first time.

[Keanu Reeves]

My recollection was there was like a room, little room. You were sitting down.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah.

[Keanu Reeves]

I walked in, said, hey, what's up? Yeah, you said, hey, what's up?

[Alex Winter]

Yeah, Motorcycle helmet. Motorcycle helmet.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Helmet.

[Keanu Reeves]

And then. Yeah. And then talk about motorcycles and bass guitars. We had stuff in common.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah. And then it expanded into like literature and theater. And then I was like, oh, he's East Coast, I'm East Coast. We'd come from theater. There was. Was a lot of similarities to our backgrounds and we were two fish out of water actors in la. So.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

Wow.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

That's nice.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah. How long it was actually.

[Stephen Colbert]

That's really. That's very. It can Be disoriented in LA at that point. It'd be lonely if you don't know anybody.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah, I was there, like, five, four, three.

[Alex Winter]

Four years before. Yeah, a few years. A couple years before I'd come out. But then we. Yeah, yeah.

[Keanu Reeves]

But then we got to act together.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah.

[Keanu Reeves]

And that's where, like, that. That thing happened.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah. Like, it's sort of like being in a band, you know, it's like a rhythm. Rhythm section. The comedy is that being who we are. We were both playing the same instrument, which isn't how a rhythm section is supposed to work. And we would actually.

[Stephen Colbert]

Four hands on one bass.

[Alex Winter]

I mean, we would literally leave set and go to one of each other's apartments with our. With our mini amps and jam, both playing bass for hours and hours and hours.

[Stephen Colbert]

But how did the neighbors feel about that?

[Alex Winter]

I mean, they thought we were out of our minds. But it is kind of nuts in retrospect.

[Stephen Colbert]

Talking about Waiting for Godot, Keanu, I understand you first had the idea of doing this.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah, yeah. About three and a half years ago, I was in London working. I had jet lag. I was in a fugue state. And the muses kind of sang down from above and said, waiting for Godot with Alex. And I went, huh? And I FaceTimed you.

[Alex Winter]

You did? Yeah.

[Keanu Reeves]

And proposed. You did?

[Alex Winter]

Yeah. I mean, I opened up the FaceTime. And this is what you always do because you always FaceTime. And I'm like, not a FaceTime. I'm like, oh, God, I've gotta, like.

[Keanu Reeves]

Put on a shirt.

[Alex Winter]

You know, it's not.

[Stephen Colbert]

It's not chest time. It's just FaceTime.

[Alex Winter]

I know, but it's, you know, it's a camera in your face.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, I understand.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Alex Winter]

So I open it, and Nick Reeves, like, his face jammed into this webcam. You, me, Gotto. And I don't know what this says that I actually understood what he meant by that. But I thought, you know, it's a great. It was a great idea. We'd been trying to find something to do together that wasn't Bill and Ted. We both love theater and been wanting to go back and do theater. I love Beckett. I knew what it entailed, though, was gonna be a monster.

[Stephen Colbert]

It is. It is a lot to bite off. You could have started with, like, the Odd Couple and worked your way up.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Alex Winter]

Every time someone suggests an alternative, he's like, yeah, we should have done that.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

We have to take a quick break. Right back with more Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter. Every Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves. It's one of the most famous plays of the 20th century. It's performed all the time. It's often misinterpreted, or people don't know that while it's a tragedy, it's a tragic comedy. It's also very funny.

[Alex Winter]

It is?

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah. What for? Take a stab, one of you, at explaining to the audience, if you don't mind, what it's about.

[Keanu Reeves]

It can't just be one thing.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay. We got all the time. Okay.

[Alex Winter]

Okay.

[Stephen Colbert]

All right.

[Alex Winter]

So one of the things settle in.

[Keanu Reeves]

If Hamlet is to be or not to be. That is the question. Beckett in Winning for Godot says, that is not the question. What are we doing here? That is the question. And.

[Stephen Colbert]

It.

[Keanu Reeves]

It starts to. In a broad sense, it talks about our relationship to a personal God, and it's like, can we be seen? Will we be judged? But really, you know, will he save us, Punish us? Will we be seen in a broad sense? And then there is friendship, codependence, yearning, Waiting.

[Alex Winter]

Yep.

[Keanu Reeves]

What are we waiting for? What can we do? How do we relate to each other? There's elements of power dynamics with a character. Pazzo and lucky. Yeah.

[Alex Winter]

There's brutality. The characters can become both brutal and loving. Like, you end up playing all of life in the course of two hours, which is kind of a trip, to be honest with you, because it's so beautifully written.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah. And about time. The collapsing of time, the human experience. In the blink of an eye, I was born. And one day I can be born. One day I will die. One day I will be deaf. One day. The circumstances of our life and how we relate to it.

[Alex Winter]

We did talk about the fact that we were both doing it in our. We were both going to turn 60 around the time we hit the stage. And it is a play about reflection, about life and mortality and where you are and what does it mean and what have you done and where are you going? And to be in that every night and to say those words, but to do that with a very close friend is pretty extraordinary.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, the design of it, it's an unusual and very beautiful design for it. Here you are right there.

[Keanu Reeves]

That's our set.

[Alex Winter]

Isn't that cool?

[Stephen Colbert]

People seeing a lot of different things in the set here. I understand you kept a list of the various things.

[Alex Winter]

He is keeping present tense because it's growing every day.

[Stephen Colbert]

I'm just curious what we have.

[Keanu Reeves]

The eye. The tunnel. The vortex. The subwoofer. The habitrail.

[Alex Winter]

The lens.

[Keanu Reeves]

The lens.

[Alex Winter]

The sewer.

[Keanu Reeves]

The sewer. The Habitrail. The circuits of time.

[Alex Winter]

Circuits of time did come up at one point.

[Keanu Reeves]

We have the cross section of a tree. We recently got the shell, the conch.

[Alex Winter]

Shell, which I think is a very beautiful one.

[Keanu Reeves]

The conch shell.

[Stephen Colbert]

The sphincter.

[Alex Winter]

The sphincter is not. That's not incorrect. Yeah, yes, sure.

[Keanu Reeves]

It's not like that. The gun barrel from dupont opening. James Bond, like, somewhere they saw barrel.

[Stephen Colbert]

To me, it does look like an eye to me. And because the iris is a little lower, you know, right here, it looks like the eye's looking down. So it looks like the universe or God or providence, that sort of thing. Yeah, it looms. That's for sure.

[Alex Winter]

Yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

It could also be a moon being eclipsed by something small.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

Your life or something like that. Yeah.

[Alex Winter]

Well, what does happen? You'll see. There is an actual. Not to spoil, but there is an actual sun that dropped or a moon that drops down into that back space and kind of. So I was right.

[Stephen Colbert]

You are correct.

[Alex Winter]

You are literally correct.

[Stephen Colbert]

I was pretty sure. I'm usually right. Now, Alex, you made your Broadway debut. How old?

[Alex Winter]

Thirteen.

[Stephen Colbert]

Thirteen.

[Alex Winter]

In K and I with Yul Brenner.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yul Brenner, This. Is this your Broadway debut?

[Keanu Reeves]

Yes, it is.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay, so let's talk for both of you. Let's talk for both of you. That sense of the butterflies before, not just opening night, but walking out on stage every night. Butterflies.

[Keanu Reeves]

Is that like the terror Butterflies?

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Alex Winter]

I think it's a polite way of saying you want to throw up.

[Stephen Colbert]

Right, Keanu?

[Keanu Reeves]

Do you get that?

[Stephen Colbert]

Do you get that every night?

[Keanu Reeves]

Every night, yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

How do you. What do you do? Do you guys have any particular rituals that a lot of people have? I have. You know, I have slapped myself in the face really hard twice before.

[Alex Winter]

I do.

[Stephen Colbert]

Both sides are wrong once at the same time. I don't want to do it right now, but I slap myself twice, and I know I've done it hard enough. If I regret having done it, great, because then I'm awake and I'm really. I'm leaving everything backstage, and I just come on stage.

[Alex Winter]

I have little prayers that I always do.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, really?

[Alex Winter]

Before each act. I don't take the risk of only just praying for the. Get through the play. That's a very hard play.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, one act.

[Alex Winter]

So each act at a time gets a prayer. And I get very freaked out if I miss one of those. Yeah. Wow. Do you have a.

[Stephen Colbert]

Do you have a ritual?

[Keanu Reeves]

I do the slapping. I do the cold water. I do the mouthwash.

[Stephen Colbert]

Sounds like, you're going out on a date.

[Keanu Reeves]

With the slapping.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, I mean, I don't know.

[Keanu Reeves]

I got. Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

Get a little rosy. I'm gonna go rosiness. I'm ready.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah.

[Keanu Reeves]

And. Yeah.

[Alex Winter]

And you have a position that you take backstage. That's interesting. He's very. You're sort of seated for Estragon. Like, I'll come out of my dressing room and I'll see you there in sort of a state. I'm like, oh, he's like seating an Astragon.

[Keanu Reeves]

That's true.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yes.

[Alex Winter]

So that's part of it.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah. Sitting in the thing.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, yeah.

[Alex Winter]

That is what he's doing.

[Stephen Colbert]

I see it. Yeah.

[Alex Winter]

That is very Astrogone.

[Stephen Colbert]

I see.

[Keanu Reeves]

Totally nothing to be done.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

We're gonna take another break here. You both have new films. Alex, you have a movie. You've directed Adulthood. What's Adulthood?

[Alex Winter]

It's a black comedy with Josh Gad and Caius Scodelario, Billy Lourd. And it's a wonderful cast. It's an ensemble film about the impossibility of adulthood in our current society.

[Keanu Reeves]

And.

[Stephen Colbert]

We want to stay tantalized.

[Alex Winter]

That's it.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

Social media keeps us together.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

And just.

[Alex Winter]

It's hard. It's hard out there for adults.

[Stephen Colbert]

Keanu, you have good fortune. You have good fortune, which opens on Friday. Right there. This is true. Is it true that after everything you've done, after all the John Wicks and all the matrices, this is the film that got you injured?

[Keanu Reeves]

Yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

What? If you don't mind sharing what.

[Keanu Reeves]

I mean, comedy's hard, right?

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Sure.

[Stephen Colbert]

Death is easy. Comedy is hard.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yes, comedy's hard.

[Stephen Colbert]

What happened?

[Keanu Reeves]

Well, I fractured my patella.

[Stephen Colbert]

Your kneecap?

[Keanu Reeves]

My kneecap. I had a vertical break like a potato chip.

[Stephen Colbert]

I'm sorry, Like a what?

[Keanu Reeves]

Like a potato chip.

[Stephen Colbert]

Could you hear it? Like, did you hear it happen?

[Keanu Reeves]

I did not hear it pop because of the scream. It was kind of simultaneous.

[Stephen Colbert]

But how. What were you doing? Pratfall or something?

[Keanu Reeves]

Okay. I was doing a scene. We were doing a cold water plunge with Aziz Ansari and Seth Rogen. And then I was going back to the dressing room. It was in residential. They had a carpet covering the carpet. And there was a little thing, and I caught my foot. I had a towel and I was cold, and then I was, like, shuffling in my little thing things. And then I caught my foot, and then I was like, whoa.

[Alex Winter]

Oh, wow.

[Keanu Reeves]

And then I spiked. I landed right on my knee. And then. And then pain ensued.

[Stephen Colbert]

Potato chip cartoon. Wow.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah. So then it did that. And then I couldn't walk. But then. Blah. And then went to the hospital and then they drained the blood.

[Alex Winter]

And then you being you, you just kept shooting for the next.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah, I kept going.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah.

[Keanu Reeves]

But, yeah, it was. It made a lot of people laugh. Aw.

[Stephen Colbert]

That you potato chipped your patella.

[Alex Winter]

Well, like, they were like.

[Keanu Reeves]

They just said, like, you're John Wick and you just. I can't swear. Right.

[Stephen Colbert]

We can always bleep it.

[Keanu Reeves]

Oh, okay. And they were like, you broke your.

[Alex Winter]

Punk it.

[Stephen Colbert]

We sadly.

[Keanu Reeves]

And the director's like, what? Aziz is like, what? I can't film because you broke your kneecap on the. Anyway.

[Alex Winter]

Wow.

[Keanu Reeves]

Sorry.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, we sadly lost as we were. As I showed the interview before the great Diane King this weekend. Keanu, people loved you two together in 2003. Something's got to give. A memory you could share of Diane Keaton and shooting this with her before we go.

[Keanu Reeves]

Just such a. Well, you know. And you know, too. I mean, just such. We all know what an extraordinary, unique, special person and artist Diane is. My. And is. It was cool for me. I got to shoot a scene Nancy Myers directed, but it was Diane and Jack Nicholson at a table in a restaurant in Paris. And just watching those two legends not. Not. Not only act, but insult each other. Like, I mean, you got a taste of it. I saw the clip that you shared.

[Alex Winter]

Yeah, Yeah.

[Keanu Reeves]

I mean, she was just like, you know, she was almost like the same thing that she did to you, which was just like, you know, she would turn and, Jack, you're just a. You know, you're just a. Blah, blah.

[Stephen Colbert]

Blah, blah, blah, blah.

[Keanu Reeves]

And he would just be like, yeah, you dirty man. And they're just grinning, but they're just insulting each other with love. Beautiful.

[Alex Winter]

Sounds like our play.

[Keanu Reeves]

Yeah. And just. Yeah, the intelligence, the humor, but just watching them just be themselves and with the history and art that they worked.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, Alex, Keanu, thanks so much for being here.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Waiting for Godot is currently at the Hudson Theater. Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves, everybody. Thank you for listening to the late show Pod show with Stephen Colbert. Just one more thing. If you want to see more of me, come to The Late Show YouTube channel for more clips and exclusives. Now streaming on Paramount.

[Keanu Reeves]

Someone is trying to frame us until.

[Stephen Colbert]

Our names are cleared.

[Keanu Reeves]

Fugitives from interval like Bonnie and Clyde with better snacks.

[Stephen Colbert]

Ncis, Tony and Ziva now streaming on Paramount. Plus, this October, Pluto TV has all the scares, all for free. With fan favorite horror movies like Paranormal Activity, the ring, Scream, and 28 Days Later. Pluto TV stream now pay never.