Keanu Reeves Was 'The Prince' of Toronto in the Late 80s

Back in the late 1980s, Keanu Reeves was emerging as a rising star in Toronto, earning the moniker "The Prince" of the city. Meanwhile, Cannon Films, a regular presence at the American Film Market, was looking to find a new vehicle for Belgian-born martial arts star Jean-Claude Van Damme after the success of their 1988 film 'Bloodsport'.

Writer-director Sheldon Lettich pitched a screenplay based on Alexandre Dumas' 'The Corsican Brothers', which Cannon's Menahem Golan eventually sold to producer Moshe Diamant. The resulting 1991 film, 'Double Impact', was Van Damme's most expensive project to date, with a budget of $15 million. In the movie, Van Damme played dual roles as brothers Alex and Chad Wagner, one violent and the other not, allowing him to showcase his range beyond just action sequences.

'Double Impact' went on to gross $80 million worldwide, cementing Van Damme's status as an action icon. The formula of having the actor play twins proved popular, with Van Damme going on to reprise the dual-role approach in several more films over the following decade.