Notoriously private actor Keanu Reeves has been secretly donating thousands of pounds to children's charities for years. The 54-year-old actor has previously revealed his sister, Kim, battled leukaemia for a decade - leading many to speculate this as one of the reasons he has been so generous with him money.

Keanu ReevesKeanu Reeves has been donating to children's charities for a number of years

The Matrix star let slip in a Ladies Home Journal article from 2009, that he has been lending a hand to the likes of cancer research and kids’ hospital wards for ‘five or six years’.

If he has continued to donate since then, he will have been contributing money to cancer charities for a decades.

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According to Snopes, a fact-checking internet site, Reeves told the publication: "I have a private foundation that’s been running for five or six years, and it helps aid a couple of children’s hospitals and cancer research."

The John Wicks actor added: "I don’t like to attach my name to it, I just let the foundation do what it does."

Just last month it was confirmed the actor had landed a role in the up coming Toy Story 4 movie.

Speaking about the role, he said: "I got a call which was really cool out the blue from the lovely people at Pixar and the creators of this number, this edition, or continuation of the story.

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"They pitched the character to me and then we spoke and they allowed me to kind of riff on it."

Tim Allen - who has played Buzz Lightyear in the trilogy - also confirmed the news when he made an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Allen hinted Reeves has a part similar to his own.

He said: "Keanu Reeves has got a great part. Even he said, gentle wonderful guy that he is, 'this sounds too much like Buzz Lightyear' and his character does have an edge to that."

Allen said the fourth instalment was "deep and moving".