Keanu Reeves is one of today’s most well-known actors. Reeves is a Hollywood staple, whether as a time-traveling musician in Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Neo in The Matrix trilogy, or the eponymous assassin in the John Wick series.

The actor has always kept his personal life private.

However, while promoting his new picture, Reeves has spoken openly about his grief.

His first child died in utero, his fiancée died in a vehicle accident, and his closest friend, fellow actor River Phoenix, died of a heroin overdose.

It’s logical, therefore, that Reeves prefers to keep his personal life private. However, he told the Guardian that he infused his real experiences into the role of John Wick.

“With any character,” he said, “the way I think about it is, you have the role on the page, you have the vision of the director and you have your life experience.”

“One of the foundations of the role for John Wick,” he stated, was his own personal experiences.

Photo by James Devaney/GC Images/Getty Images

Grief is intriguing “for the character and in life,” according to Reeves, since “it’s about the love of the person you’re grieving for, and any time you can keep company with that fire, it’s warm.”

“I absolutely relate to that, and I don’t think you ever work through it. Grief and loss, those are things that don’t ever go away. They stay with you. Losing someone is always with you, but like an ebb and flow.”

It’s vital to remember that there are numerous things one may do to counteract emotions of loss and despair, much as Reeves channeled his anguish into his acting and charity. First and foremost, keep in mind that grieving normally occurs in five stages: denial, anger, bargaining, sadness, and acceptance.

Grief is a highly intimate experience, making it tough to open up about it, and studies have found that males have a harder time talking about it than women.

But prominent figures like Reeves, Beanie Feldstein, and Jessica Williams can help us all understand that loss comes in many different shapes and forms, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to dealing with it.