Cyberpunk 2077's last Night City Wire Episode gave us a trailer dedicated to Johnny Silverhand, painting a picture of a man that is nuanced, chaotic, and lives for destruction.
The trailer is brief – but breathtaking – and offers some more insight into his background, motivations, and the role he'll play in Cyberpunk 2077's narrative. Once the trailer wraps up, Keanu Reeves makes an appearance to discuss the process of bringing Silverhand to life. This is among the most in-depth voice acting gigs he's ever taken, but it's clear he's passionate about the role.
Casting for Silverhand was a drawn-out process, and Keanu wasn't the only choice for the position. Other actors, voice-actors, and even lead singers in rock bands were all in the running. However, Keanu ended up being a perfect fit. Borys Pugacz-Muraszkiewicz, English Adaptation Director at CD Projekt Red, said Keanu was a "consummate professional" while on set and gave a "dazzling" performance that the player will immediately connect with.
He also pointed out that Silverhand is more than a side-kick in this story, and has his own motivations beyond those of the player. The two will often come into conflict, and it'll be interesting to see how this plays out over the course of the story. But, no matter what, you can expect to see another incredible performance from Reeves.
The fifth episode of Night City Wire was packed with content – and not all of it was about Silverhand. CD Projekt Red also gave us a behind-the-scenes look at the development process for the game's soundtrack. Several popular artists played a role in bringing Night City's audio to life, including Rat Boy, Grimes, and Run the Jewels. Although it seems none of them are getting the Stormzy treatment, they all lend a distinct sound to the world of Night City and amplify its dystopian vibes.
However, some of those tracks might cause issues over on Twitch and violate DMCA policies. To prevent that from happening, Cyberpunk 2077 includes a feature that disables certain "problematic" tracks to ensure you won't run into any legal trouble during your stream.
Cyberpunk 2077 is set to release on December 10.