For Aziz Ansari, it was a no-brainer for Keanu Reeves to play the guardian angel in his new film, Good Fortune.

He has a reputation of being such a sweet, kind of almost angelic figure and he also has this wisdom. If someone told you, Hey, you know Keanus like 3,000 years old, youd be like, That kind of tracks, He has this depth to him, Ansari told The Hollywood Reporter at the New York City premiere earlier this week. Hes also so funny in this film. I looked at some of his older work, stuff he did in Bill Ted and Parenthood, and took little pieces of that and constructed this character and he just knocks it out of the park. In the movie, Reeves guardian angel, Gabriel, has struggling worker Arj (Ansari) and rich venture capitalist, Jeff (Seth Rogen), swap lives for a week to help them better appreciate the good fortune they already have.

For Reeves, the feeling of playing the character was mutual with Ansari. I love comedy and it was a wonderful script, Reeves told THR.

The film also marks Ansaris directorial debut and, like Gabriel, he said so many of my director friends have been guardian angels to him in his career. Spike Jones recommended Carter Burwell for me to use this, and he was such a kind guy. Steven Soderbergh watched an early cut of the film and gave me some very positive feedback that really brightened my heart after working on the movie so much, he said. When youre in this business of directing and writing, you look to your heroes. All of them have been so nice to me, so I feel like I owe them a shout-out.

Aziz Ansari, Sandra Oh and Keanu Reeves pose together on the carpet at the premiere of #GoodFortune in NYC pic.twitter.com/3OJdl0zYNe

The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) October 13, 2025 Sandra Oh, who plays Reeves boss, angel Martha, said it was a joy and very easy to support Ansari in his first directorial effort.

While Good Fortune was the first time Reeves and Oh collaborated with Ansari, it was the fourth time for Rogen. They previously worked together in films such as Funny People, Observe and Report and This Is the End. But outside of their professional work, theyve built a two-decade-long friendship.

Aziz told THR Rogens support has meant so much to him over the years. Hes not only an actor in the film, but he was always thinking about the film as a whole and how we could make it better and was so supportive of me, he said. Hes one of the people who has pulled off what were trying to pull off here in terms of making films that people can enjoy in a theater and have this communal experience. So any of his guidance and wisdom I took to heart.

Good Fortune is now out in theaters.

Aziz Ansari and Seth Rogen speak onstage during the Good Fortune special screening at American Cinematheques Beyond Fest. Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Lionsgate