China arranged for Matrix star Keanu Reeves to disappear off all Chinese video streaming platforms after the actor was involved in a Tibet-related concert organised by a non-profit founded at the behest of the Dalai Lama. They don’t particularly like the Dalai Lama much.

Reeves’ acclaimed films such as The Matrix, Speed, and John Wick were among the nineteen movies taken down from Tencent Video. Maybe seeing the newest Matrix contributed to these actions, but we’re pretty sure it’s the whole Tibet/concert thing.

WeChat, the WhatsApp and Telegram of China, still shows material from Reeves’ films such as The Matrix. But searches for his name, either in English or its Chinese translation, yield no results. China, apparently, has deleted Keanu Reeves.

Why China deleted Reeves

This isn’t the first time that Johnny Silverhand has been in trouble with the country. Reeves received intense criticism from Chinese social media users in January after he attended a concert hosted by Tibet House US in New York City. The non-profit was founded at the suggestion of the Dalai Lama. Chinese social media users called for a boycott of Reeves. We guess they got what they wanted.

China, which annexed Tibet in 1951 and has kept tight control over the region since, insists that the choice of the next Dalai Lama lies only with China, and has even enshrined this right into Chinese law. Tibet Buddhism believes that the next Dalai Lama will be reincarnated. China currently recognises the Panchen Lama, who was elevated by the country’s Communist Party, as Tibet’s supreme religious leader. The Dalai Lama, currently in exile in India, has been accused of provoking dissent in the region.

Source: Reuters