10 Little-Known Facts About “Constantine” That Surprised Us on Its 20th Anniversary

Constantine has become a cult movie, and it made Keanu Reeves the coolest exorcist on the screen. It now celebrates 20 years since its release, and while the legion of fans is still anxiously awaiting a sequel, we decided to celebrate this anniversary by unearthing secrets and curiosities of the film that you never imagined possible.

1. Constantine is inspired by a rocker.

Although Keanu Reeves gave an excellent performance, the original comic book character looked completely different. Alan Moore, creator of the anti-hero, was inspired by Sting himself. It would have been interesting to see a Constantine with platinum blond hair and leather jackets.

2. Other actors could have brought Constantine to life.

Before Keanu joined the production, Nicolas Cage, due to his experience in similar films, was the favorite candidate. However, the studio decided to take a different path, opening the door for Reeves. Mel Gibson was also on the shortlist to play the famous exorcist.

3. It wasn’t supposed to be anything like a typical comic book movie.

Francis Lawrence, the director, wanted to move Constantine away from the typical comic book movie style. He went for a more realistic and raw approach. So instead of shiny, colorful weapons, Constantine uses sacred artifacts that look worn and ancient, as if they were authentic historical relics.

4. The holy water grenades were actually something else.

The action scenes also hide unique details. For example, the powerful holy water grenades we see on screen are simply Christmas ornaments filled with water. And for the scenes where Keanu throws projectiles at Balthazar, the production resorted to water balloons.

5. Sets were taken from another film.

It is common practice in cinema to reuse production elements between films from the same studio, and Constantine was no exception. For example, the famous Spear of Destiny that appears in the film was borrowed from another well-known production: Hellboy.

6. Keanu learned from a real exorcist.

Keanu undoubtedly took his role as an exorcist very seriously. To prepare for it, he trained with a real exorcist, learning techniques and rituals to make his performance more realistic. Although, as he confessed, he was quite relieved that no paranormal entities appeared during the filming.

7. Rachel visited morgues.

Rachel Weisz, who plays detective Angela Dodson, also immersed herself fully in her role. To better understand her character’s work as a coroner, she visited real morgues as part of her investigation, an experience that we have no doubt brought a lot of realism to her performance.

8. An original and terrifying hell

To depict hell in Constantine, the director moved away from traditional imagery. Instead of bonfires, horns, and spiky tails, he was inspired by the devastation of radioactive disasters. He imagined hell as a parallel universe, a replica of our world, but ravaged by perpetual nuclear explosions: a terrifying and original vision.

9. No CGI or stuntmen were used in difficult scenes.

Keanu, ever committed, performed many of his own stunts, including a scene where he is thrown through the air on a wire. Rachel Weisz didn’t stay behind. She recalls that it was terrifying to be submerged many times in a bathtub for a scene. Especially after hearing the director tell Keanu that he shouldn’t “go easy on her.”

10. Angels and demons away from the classic model

The director sought to break with several film clichés. One example is Gabriel's wings, who was played by Tilda Swinton. Instead of the typical angelic white ones, he opted for dark ones with a bird-like appearance, giving him a more disturbing look. For the demons, the inspiration came from autopsy images rather than the familiar traditional medieval depictions.

Films are a bottomless pit of secrets and curiosities, what's the craziest detail you've picked up in some iconic film?