In his directorial debut, Jan de Bont directs
Keanu Reeves,
Sandra Bullock and Dennis Hopper in this fast paced-high action drama. Nominated for a total of 29 awards, Speed won 12, including two Oscars. Reeves plays Officer Jack Travin, a cop trying to save passengers on a bus that is wired to explode if it should fall under 50 MPH, courtesy of a terrorist played by Hopper. Throughout the dilemma, Reeves manages to find a love interest in one of the passengers on the bus (Bullock).
Several actors turned down the role of Jack including Tom Hanks,
George Clooney,
Tom Cruise, Bruce Willis and Michael Keaton. Released June 10, 1994, Speed was voted number 99 on AFI's Top 100 Heart Pounding Movies of All Time. It debuted at number one and opening weekend grossed $14.5 million. Speed went on to gross $350.5 million worldwide.
