Keanu Reeves might have his work cut out for him. On Wednesday night, Dallas Mavericks center Boban Marjanović – who appeared with Reeves in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum – claimed that he could easily defeat the Matrix star in a real-life fight. The 7’4” Serbian basketball star cameoed in the third John Wick film as Ernest, one of the various assassins gunning for Reeves’s Wick through New York City.
In the movie, the two battle it out in the New York Public Library, with Wick ultimately clutching out the win. In real life, Boban and the Mavericks are currently battling it out in a first-round playoffs series against the highly-seeded Los Angeles Clippers, with the series tied 1-1 after a Dallas victory Wednesday night. An imposing force on and off the court, Boban is the second tallest player in the NBA.
During a postgame interview on Inside the NBA on TNT, cohost and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley praised Boban’s performance in Parabellum, and asked, “If that happened in real life and it wasn’t in the script, wouldn’t you kick Keanu Reeves’s ass?” to which Boban confidently responded, “Of course my friend.”
The conversation is clearly all in good fun, and it's entertaining to see someone from a different side of the entertainment industry offer an amusing and affectionate jab at Reeves. Boban attributed his interest in acting to Shaquille O’Neal, who cohosts Inside with Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson. During the game’s coverage, Shaq compared Boban to another famous character of the screen – The Addams Family’s hulking butler, Lurch – by nicknaming Boban with the butler’s famous catchphrase, “You rang?” Between his big-budget action scenes and favorable comparisons to beloved characters, the Serbian star might have a bright future in cinema.
While Boban would likely have the edge (and obviously the size) on Reeves in real-life one-on-one, there’s no shame in losing to the mythical John Wick. The popular action series has exploded in popularity since the first movie debuted in 2014, with the fourth and fifth entries both confirmed and in the early stages of preproduction. The overarching world and storyline of John Wick have expanded dramatically from the first movie’s simple, stylish revenge tale, and the series is sure to add even more absurd lore and wild action when filming for John Wick 4 begins next year.
The death of Ernest in Parabellum means Boban won't have the chance for an on-screen rematch with Reeves in future John Wick movies, but maybe the two could team up for another great fight scene somewhere down the line. They certainly share a self-aware, lovable quality in the eyes of their own fans. And with that size and imposing presence, Boban could make a great Matrix 4 villain.
Source: Inside the NBA on TNT