BUFFALO, NY (WKBW) -- Hollywood invaded downtown Buffalo on Tuesday with movie star Keanu Reeves in town as shooting gets underway on his dark romantic comedy titled "Henry's Crime". Eyewitness News cameras captured Reeves slipping into a denim jacket to shoot a scene on Exchange Street near downtown.
The location shoot caught workers at the Alp Steel Corporation on Exchange Street by surprise. "We opened the door before and the police car was out here and we looked to see what was going on and all of a sudden a whole bunch of people started showing up with cameras and it's kind of interesting," says Tom McSkimning of Alp Steel Corp.
McSkimning says he didn't recognize the actor at first. "When I saw him on tv when they were showing him shooting he had long hair and scraggly beard," explains McSkimning. That was when Reeves was in town scouting locations. Now that the actual filming is underway he's changed his look.
"There was somebody all of a sudden no jacket, carrying a duffel bag. Oh, it was him then. That's neat," says McSkimning.
Reeves and his crew headed for Chef's restaurant nearby for lunch. "Just got in. Going to lunch," Reeves told Eyewitness News as he slipped in a side door of the restaurant. Chef's has apparently become one of the actor's favorite places to eat in Buffalo.
"Today he had some boneless chicken and some pasta broccoli and veggie lasagna," says Chef's owner Louis Billittier Jr., "He had our spaghetti parm last time he was here. He loved all of it."
Reeves even posed for a picture with the owner during one of his earlier visits. "He's up on our wall but I was going to have him do it today actually because now that he's shaved for the movie... last time he was in town he had the beard and long hair," explains Billittier.
After a quick bite to eat Tuesday Reeves hopped into a black S.U.V. and was whisked back off to work. Other filming locations Tuesday included a building at Main and Seneca Streets where's it believed they're shooting underground scenes.
On Wednesday and Thursday the filming is scheduled to take place at least part of the day around the metro rail tracks downtown. Because of the filming the NFTA's metro rail at Main and Huron Streets will be suspended between the two stations between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. both days. Shuttle service will be provided to take passengers around the closed off area.
In "Henry's Crime" Reeves is rumored to be playing a man wrongly accused of robbing a bank.
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