Keanu Reeves reacts to having bacteria named after him

Keanu Reeves has played many roles such as John Wick and Neo — and now he’s also bacteria.

Scientists in Germany discovered an effective fungus-killing compound that was so deadly that they named it “keanumycins,” after the actor.

“The lipopeptides kill so efficiently that we named them after Keanu Reeves because he, too, is extremely deadly in his roles,” study co-author Sebastian Götze, a researcher with Germany’s Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, said in a statement.

Reeves, 58, was answering questions from fans during a Reddit Ask Me Anything thread when someone asked him about Keanu, the fungicide.

“[Researchers] from Germany found a compound naturally produced by some type of [bacteria] that is so effective at killing fungi, they named it after you: keanumycins. What are your thoughts about that?” a user asked.

He responded with gratitude for the scientists, saying it was “cool” and “surreal.”

“They should’ve called it John Wick . . . but that’s pretty cool . . . and surreal for me. But thanks, scientist people! Good luck, and thank you for helping us,” Reeves wrote in response via the Lionsgate Reddit account.

Keanumycins, discovered last month, were found to be effective against both plant-fungal diseases and human-pathogenic fungi.

The compounds — molecules found in bacteria called lipopeptides — can provide an environmentally friendly alternative to chemical pesticides, according to the study published recently in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Keanumycins are also biodegradable and harmless to plants.

Researchers tested the Keanu bacteria on a hydrangea infected with Botrytis cinerea, a plant pest that triggers gray mold rot and commonly infects fruits and vegetables and ultimately causes damage to harvests.

It was found that the bacteria was affected by the mold rot as it inhibited the growth of the fungus.

They also tested the compound against fungi that are dangerous to humans, such as Candida albicans, and found that the deadly bacteria inhibit the fungus and is safe for humans.

“We have a crisis in anti-infectives. … Many human-pathogenic fungi are now resistant to antimycotics (antifungals) — partly because they are used in large quantities in agricultural fields,” Götze said.

Fungal infections have been a big topic in pop culture lately thanks to the HBO series “The Last of Us,” which suggests they can be difficult to treat — but not impossible.

The Keanu Reeves-namesake bacteria are “good lead structure candidates for the development of antifungal drugs,” and could be a new potential candidate for antifungals, which are high in demand due to there being few drugs against fungal infections available.

The researchers will be conducting further testing on keanumycins.