Ana de Armas candidly talks about Keanu Reeves amid Tom Cruise split

Ana de Armas traced her path from Cuba to Hollywood.  

During an In Conversation session at the Red Sea International Film Festival on Friday, the actress talks openly about her long friendship with Keanu Reeves and her unexpected shift into action films.

De Armas recalled meeting Reeves shortly after arriving in Los Angeles for her first U.S. film, Knock Knock. “When I first moved to L.A., we did Knock Knock together, and at that time I barely spoke English,” she said. 

“We bonded really well, and we have a beautiful friendship.” She described Reeves as “incredibly kind and generous,” adding that reuniting on Ballerina “felt full circle… having him there, supporting me ten years later, meant a lot.”

Her action career, she said, grew unexpectedly. “I never thought of myself as athletic or imagined I’d do action movies,” she noted, citing No Time to Die, The Gray Man, Ghosted and Ballerina as milestones. The training, she admitted, was grueling: “It was exhausting — but I enjoyed it. I learned so much.”

De Armas also reflected on her childhood in Cuba — “I had a very happy childhood… I always knew I wanted to be an actress. There was no Plan B” — and her early start in Havana’s theater school before moving to Madrid with only “300 euros.”

Her Hollywood breakthrough came with Blade Runner 2049, which she called “a dream.” She said No Time to Die marked a turning point: “Those fifteen minutes on screen changed my life.”

Her Oscar-nominated performance in Blonde was transformative. “It was the most terrifying thing I’ve ever done, but also the most beautiful… It changed the way I approach acting.”

Now, she focuses on seeking roles that challenge her. “Sometimes what the industry offers is not what I want to do… I’m not here to play it safe.”