Keanu Reeves mystified by Matthew Perry’s strange insult: ‘Came out of left field,’ report says

Keanu Reeves isn’t known to get riled up by much, so he reportedly wasn’t angry when Matthew Perry said something strangely disrespectful about him in his new memoir, “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.”

Still, Reeves was mystified, according to an insider who spoke to Us Weekly.

“Keanu thought the comments came out of left field,” the insider told Us Weekly. “It’s kind of backfired on Matthew anyway, which is why he had to apologize.”

Many agreed that Perry’s comments were strange and unnecessary, given that Reeves has a reputation for being one of the most genuinely kind and easy-going stars in Hollywood. Fans couldn’t understand why the “Friends” alum would appear to refer to “The Matrix” star in a negative light in multiple sections of his memoir, which chronicles his struggles with fame and his ongoing battle with drug and alcohol addiction, Us Weekly said.

In one objectionable passage, Perry lamented the 1993 death of his friend River Phoenix, from a drug overdose, and negatively compared him to Reeves.

“River was a beautiful man inside and out — too beautiful for this world, it turned out,” Perry said. “It always seems to be the really talented guys who go down. Why is it that the original thinkers like River Phoenix and Heath Ledger die, but Keanu Reeves still walks among us?”

Perry also took aim at Reeves while discussing the 1997 death of Chris Farley, also from a drug overdose, Us Weekly said. Perry wrote, “I punched a hole through Jennifer Aniston’s dressing room wall when I found out (about Farley’s death).”

Perry added in this passage: “Keanu Reeves walks among us.”

Perry faced pretty intense backlash for throwing shade at Reeves, who’s not known for ever giving offense to either colleagues on film sets or fans he encounters in public. Perry finally apologized, issuing a statement that said, “I’m actually a big fan of Keanu.”

In writing his memoir, Perry said he just “chose a random name” of a fellow celebrity to use as a punchline.

“My mistake. I apologize,” Perry said. “I should have used my own name instead.”