Altered image appears to show Keanu Reeves holding anti-Trump shirt


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In 2018, PolitiFact fact-checked a fabricated quote attributed to actor Keanu Reeves, who purportedly said then-President Donald Trump was “the symbol of a successful man and a role model for every young American.”

Reeves didn’t say that. And six years later, he also wasn’t photographed holding an anti-Trump shirt. 

“Make prison great again,” reads the text on a shirt with an image of Trump in an orange jumpsuit sitting behind bars. Reeves appears to be holding the shirt. An Oct. 27 Facebook post sharing the image was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and Threads.)

This image was altered. The original, taken in 2017 in Milan, shows Reeves at EICMA, an international motorcycle exhibition. In this photo, his arms are at his sides — not holding up a shirt. 

This image has been edited to appear to show Reeves holding up other shirts. Snopes fact-checked one in which he looks like he’s displaying a pro-Trump shirt that says, “I will never stop fighting for America” and shows Trump with his fist raised after a July 13 assassination attempt

We looked for but found no evidence that Reeves has endorsed Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, or Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee. 

We rate claims this is an authentic image of Reeves False.

 

Truth-o-meter Ruling

False

If your time is short

  • This image was altered. The original doesn’t show actor Keanu Reeves holding a shirt against former President Donald Trump. 

Statement

A photo shows actor Keanu Reeves holding an anti-Trump shirt.

Context

a Facebook post

Speaker/Target

Speaker: Viral image
Targets: Donald Trump

Statement Date

October 27, 2024
Our Sources

Facebook post, Oct. 27, 2024

Threads post, Oct. 24, 2024

Facebook post, Oct. 26, 2024

Facebook post, Oct. 26, 2024

PolitiFact, No, Keanu Reeves did not call Donald Trump a ‘role model’ for American youth, March 5, 2018

Getty Images, EICMA 2017 - International Motorcycle Fair, Nov. 8, 2017

Snopes, Photo Shows Keanu Reeves Holding Pro-Trump T-Shirt?, Sept. 30, 2024

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