Never-before-seen audition tapes for the original movie show the instant chemistry Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter had as Bill and Ted. The pair have appeared as the titular characters in all three movies, including Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure and Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey, both released when the actors were still in their 20s and were playing high school students. The long-delayed third movie in the franchise, Bill and Ted Face the Music, which returns to the pair as middle-aged men who still haven’t fulfilled their destiny of creating the greatest song in history, will be released in theaters and on VOD on August 28.
This time around, the slacker heroes will be joined by Samara Weaving and Brigette Lundy-Paine, who play their daughters. The original films, while featuring simplistic plots and silly humor, were a success mainly due to the chemistry between the leads. Reeves and Ted and Winter as Bill are a classic comedy duo, able to play off each other and complement each other’s strengths.
Now, new auditions tapes showing the pair reading through a scene proves that the chemistry was in place from the very start. Released by The Daily Mail, the never-before-seen footage shows the pair running lines in character, auditioning with some very familiar scenes. Interestingly, the first video sees Reeves playing Bill and Winter as Ted, but in the second video the actors are playing the correct roles. You can watch both videos below.
Both Reeves and Winter seem to have been born to play the roles, as even in the raw audition footage, they inhabit their goofy characters perfectly, rarely missing an opportunity to guffaw or just generally act like the characters would in real life. That’s hardly a surprise, given that the characters have become cinema icons, even inspiring Kevin Smith to create his own stoner duo, Jay and Silent Bob.
The 34-year-old audition footage also reveals just why Reeves, who has become a major blockbuster action star, and Winter, who has enjoyed a successful career as a documentary filmmaker since starring in the franchise, chose to return for the third movie, despite many questioning whether the effort was worth it. Their chemistry is so natural and easy that it must have been difficult to turn down the chance to slip into the characters’ shoes one more time.
Thankfully they did, as Bill and Ted Face The Music looks like it’s a worthy successor to the original films. Despite Reeves and Winter both being in their mid-50s now, Bill and Ted still seem as funny as they were 30 years ago, and the addition of their daughters should add a new dynamic to the movie.
