‘John Wick’ lookalike in Bangkok charms Thai social media users

BANGKOK: An unidentified foreign man who looks like superstar Keanu Reeves’ John Wick character has become the darling of Thai social-media users overnight, thanks to viral TikTok videos showing him doing things uncharacteristic to the Hollywood hitman in Thailand.

Thai media outlets – both mainstream and online – widely reported about the viral videos on Saturday (May 25).

The videos, shared on a TikTok account called “Tuktiklife”, drew several funny comments from Thai social-media users. Many of them said the man looked very much like John Wick, while others joked that the hitman could be on a new mission in Thailand.

Nine short clips shared on the account showed the John Wick lookalike at different places in Thailand while he was making coffee, selling grilled cuttlefish, washing dishes, and visiting Bangkok’s Wat Arun in Thai traditional attire. The videos attracted views ranging from 106,000 to 4.7 million.

“John Wick is spending his retirement in Thailand,” one commenter quipped.

“He retired as a hitman to become a full-time vendor,” another comment said.

The 2014 Hollywood movie “John Wick” tells the story of a retired hitman (played by Keanu Reeves) who is forced to return to his old ways after a group of Russian gangsters steal his car and kill a puppy gifted to him by his late wife, who died of cancer.

A clip showing the John Wick lookalike wearing elephant pants and riding a motorcycle to sell grilled cuttlefish, with a caption: “Everything got a price,” had drawn 3.1 million views as of Saturday.

Another TikTok video, titled “Barista”, showing him making coffee at a local Thai market attracted as many as 4.6 million views.

The account’s most popular clip, with 4.7 million views, shows the man at a Thai shopping mall posing with many locals who took turns to have their photos taken with him.

That video drew more than 1,600 comments. While many commenters said the man could be Keanu Reeves’ stuntman or simply a lookalike, some others said they were convinced this was actually the Hollywood superstar who is here for the filming of a new John Wick movie. - The Nation/ANN