Keanu Reeves won't be a Cyberpunk 2077 romance option, according to CD Projekt Red level designer Max Pears, who revealed that Johnny Silverhand wouldn't be going on dates with players during an interview at the Tokyo Game Show 2019. Keanu Reeves has been a major boon to the Cyberpunk 2077 marketing campaign, as fans have fully embraced the actor's involvement in the title, making him the subject of a number of wholesome memes that have also had the side effect of generating positive buzz for CD Projekt Red's upcoming open-world sci-fi RPG.
Cyberpunk 2077 is edging closer to its launch in early 2020, and the game has begun to pick up steam after some scintillating gameplay reveals during the summer tradeshow circuit. Keanu Reeves' character, Johnny Silverhand, remains a major selling point, but that would be undervaluing a lot of what fans have picked up on during interviews and trailers. Cyberpunk 2077's world-building, previously a source of repeated controversy, is beginning to gain recognition as a draw, especially after Cyberpunk creator Mike Pondsmith defended the way the game explored complicated depictions of race. The decision to completely forgo a male and female gender option to better support a diverse player demographic has also helped re-establish the game as a progressive look at the future of RPGs.
Despite more flexibility on character bodies and representation, there will be a more rigid implementation of romance itself - at least when it comes to Keanu Reeves. In an interview with VGC at TGS 2019, Pears was asked whether or not Keanu would be included as a romance option in Cyberpunk 2077. Much to the dismay of fans the world over, Pears' response was in the negative, stating "Keanu plays a crucial role in the game, but as for the option to romance him, I don't believe you can."
Naturally, fans have begun to cling to the fact that Pears says he doesn't "believe" players can romance Keanu Reeves in Cyberpunk 2077, which seems to offer some room for interpretation. If fans can't romance Johnny Silverhand, though, there's probably a good reason - him not having a corporeal body being the largest one, on top of the fact he seems to be heavily factored into Cyberpunk 2077's main plot, perhaps to the point that a romance option wouldn't be possible because of storyline concerns.
Still, after Keanu Reeves called Cyberpunk 2077 fans everywhere breathtaking, it's unfortunate they can't reciprocate by offering to take his character to dinner. Given the way CD Projekt Red has deftly managed fan response to Keanu Reeves in Cyberpunk 2077 so far, though, perhaps there's still room to hope Silverhand will be added as a romance option late - or in future DLC, something that CD Projekt Red is renowned for crafting so well it might as well be a new game all on its own.