Keanu Reeves is in negotiations to star in a live-action hybrid LEGO picture, with Josh Cooley directing. Jill Wilfert and Ryan Christians will produce through The LEGO Group, and while the plot remains under wraps, sources confirm it will blend live-action with animation.
Whether Reeves will appear on screen or voice a character in the film has not yet been confirmed. That ambiguity feels fitting for a project that has taken some time to find its shape.
Since landing the rights in 2020, Universal had been developing multiple scripts without success. Insiders say the studio eventually shifted strategy, building the project specifically around Reeves as an A-list anchor. After weeks of back and forth, Reeves began engaging with the studio. Sources indicate that Cooley's creative vision for the story ultimately paved the way for Reeves' involvement.
The urgency behind these negotiations has real stakes. Insiders say if the studio did not have a film close to pre-production within six months, the LEGO rights could lapse and return to market.
Cooley and Reeves are not strangers to each other or to toy-based blockbusters. Cooley is an Academy Award winner for Best Animated Feature for Toy Story 4, with prior Pixar credits spanning The Incredibles, Cars, Up, and Ratatouille. His most recent directorial effort was Transformers One, an animated film featuring Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry, and Scarlett Johansson that underperformed commercially but earned largely positive reviews and an 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Reeves, for his part, is currently riding a notable box office moment. He reprised his role as Duke Caboom in Toy Story 5, released exclusively in theaters on June 19, 2026. Before that, he starred in the fourth John Wick installment, which grossed over $440 million globally, and appeared in the 2025 spin-off Ballerina alongside Ana de Armas. In fall 2025, Reeves also made his Broadway debut in a revival of Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot, directed by Jamie Lloyd.
Since Universal acquired the film rights in 2020, the studio announced several live-action LEGO projects from directors including Jake Kasdan, Patty Jenkins, and Joe Cornish, though none came to fruition. The franchise's commercial history makes the case for renewed investment clear enough: the original LEGO films grossed a combined $1.1 billion globally.
With negotiations reportedly advanced and a six-month production deadline looming over the project, the question now shifts from whether this film happens to what, exactly, it will be.
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