For several years now, a quote attributed to the Hollywood actor has been circulating on the RuNet. He allegedly said that “while there is time, you need to live for your own pleasure” and be yourself, “because there is simply no time for the rest.” Moreover, in some sources other celebrities are also named as the author of the phrase. We checked who the real author of this statement is.
One of the most common versions of the viral phrase is: “This is life, and none of us are getting out of here alive. So don't treat yourself as something secondary. While there is time, you need to live for your own pleasure. After all, tomorrow may be too late. So do what you want. Eat deliciously, sunbathe in the sun, don’t be shy about being lazy. Be silly and weird, but be yourself. After all, there’s simply no time for everything else!” A shortened version of this quote with a slightly different translation is also popular. The fact that its author is Richard Gere was reported on August 19, 2025 by the public “Right Thoughts" on VKontakte (at the time of writing this analysis, the post received 566,000 views). Similar recording in the same community, it was released in October 2024 and was viewed 115,000 times. The quote signed by Gere is also popular on Facebook*, where the group’s post Who's Who received 126,000 likes in 2020. Many similar publications can be found in other groups on VKontakte (examples here, here, here, here And here) and Facebook (here And here), on Telegram (here, here And here), "VK Video", "Zene", Instagram* and on "Peekaboo"
The same quote (sometimes with a slightly modified translation) is also attributed to another actor, Keanu Reeves. For example, on December 8, 2024 I did this public “Rhymes and Punch” on VKontakte (337,000 views) and the same name Telegram channel (197,000). Similar posts can be found in other public pages (here, here And here) and channels (here, here And here), as well as in TikTok, books (including the artist’s biography released in Russia), on websites with quotes and portal "Movie poster"
In the English-speaking segment of the Internet, a viral quote is distributed under the authorship of not only Gere and Reeves, but also noticed fact checkers from the Snopes project, at least two more actors - Christopher Walken and Anthony Hopkins. However, neither we nor our American colleagues found such words in interviews and public appearances of all these artists. U Hopkins And Gira There are verified accounts on social networks, but there are no posts with a quote attributed to them either.
In fact, the author of the viral statement is not a movie star. This text is for the first time appeared in 2015 on the Sweatpants & Coffee Facebook page. According to its description, it is a community and online platform “focused on comfort, creativity, inspiration and fun.” Founder of the community - blogger and writer Nanea Hoffman, which also sells its books, stuffed animals and other merchandise. The quote in her post was:
"Note to self:
None of us are getting out of here alive, so please stop treating yourself like an afterthought. Eat delicious food. Take a walk in the sun. Jump into the ocean. Speak the truth that you carry in your heart as a treasure. Be stupid. Be kind. Be weird. There’s no time for anything else.”
After some time, an addition appeared in the caption to that publication:
“Friends, from now on you will see my name in these posts a lot - mainly because people wanted to know who writes all this (and also because sometimes some people allow themselves to “borrow” or appropriate my words, and that’s just not cool). Well, that's me. Sweatpants & Coffee is basically my internal dialogue spilled onto the internet in an attempt to find like-minded people. Wonderful people like you. Well, that's all. This is me talking to myself and to you. It's awkward, honest, stupid and with no small amount of angst. I love you."
There is another, expanded version of the same text. Its author prefaces Hoffman’s quote with a story about his friend’s father and mother (in some versions instead of mom, a friend appears). The gist of the story is this: the woman led a healthy lifestyle, but in her old age she was diagnosed with several serious diseases, while the man never took care of his health, but at 81 he was in excellent physical shape. Then the mother is quoted: “If I had known my life would end like this, I would have lived it to the fullest, enjoying everything I was told not to do!”
Publications in which this story is attributed to Giru, That Reeves, popular on VKontakte (here, here, here, here And here), Telegram (here, here And here) and on entertainment sites (for example, “I cried").
One of these posts claims that Reeves posted these thoughts on his Facebook page, but the Matrix star does not have publicly known profiles on social networks. However, neither Verified nor Snopes were able to identify the real author of the long version of the story that appeared on the Internet no later than November 2015, however, there is no evidence that its author is any of the Hollywood actors listed above.
Note that the phrase “None of us are getting out of here alive” is not Hoffman’s original idea, but is most likely a pop culture reference. For example, in the song released in 1968 Five to One The Doors were similar words: “No one here gets out alive.” Subsequently, this line became the title of a biographical books and documentary film about the leader of the group - Jim Morrison.
Thus, neither Richard Gere nor Keanu Reeves has ever publicly uttered the viral motivational quote that begins, "This is life, and none of us are getting out of here alive." In fact, this text was written by a blogger on Facebook in 2015.
*Russian authorities think Meta Platforms Inc., which owns the social networks Facebook and Instagram, is an extremist organization; its activities and symbols are prohibited in Russia.
Cover photo: poster film "Hachiko: The Most Faithful Friend" / frame from the movie "John Wick" / collage "Checked"
- Did Anthony Hopkins say that the hardest and most important thing in life is to let go of people who are not ready to love you?
- Did Robin Williams say, “The worst thing in life is to die surrounded by people who make you feel alone”?
- Did Jim Carrey say, "You'll be surprised how easy it is to get out of bed in the morning when you're happy"?
- Was Keanu Reeves talking about hating a world without “traditional” values?
- The fictional world of Gek publics (VMGP)
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