What appeared to be a simple, small-budget 2014 action thriller film turned into a massive franchise that would collectively gross nearly $600 million worldwide and revamp Keanu Reeves' career. Now already three films in, the John Wick franchise, like its main protagonist, shows no signs of slowing down as a fourth film is ready to spring into action in May of 2022.
Once John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum hit theaters back in 2019, Lionsgate immediately announced a fourth addition that would see the return of Reeves back in the titular role. With an original set release date of May 21st, the COVID-19 pandemic had other plans, pushing the release date back a year. Now roughly 6 months away, there is no better time to discuss the highly anticipated John Wick: Chapter 4. Here's what we know about the film so far.
Pre-production and Filming
The official announcement of a fourth film came from Lionsgate where fans who had been receiving "John Wick" text updates from the production company received the sequel news stating, "You have served. You will be of service. John Wick: Chapter 4 is coming – May 21, 2021." Although Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer initially announced that a John Wick 4 and John Wick 5 would be filming back to back, they dropped those plans in March 2021 due the countless delays caused by either the pandemic or scheduling conflicts (as Reeves was busy working on the upcoming The Matrix Resurrections).
Cameras began rolling in June 2021 for the fourth film, as the main shooting locations took place in Berlin and Paris, changing up the scenery as the majority of the last three films were primarily set in New York. Additional filming took place in Japan and New York as well.
Cast and Characters
Keanu Reeves of course will be returning yet again to play the deadly assassin John Wick. The character has been compared to many popular 80s slasher franchises, as the modern action star Wick is described in his films as the Boogeyman (aka Baba Yaga) with over 300 kills. Ian McShane will reprise his role as Winston, the manager of the New York Continental Hotel, Laurence Fishburne is set to return as The Bowery King, Wick's loyal ally that runs the underground intelligent network disguised as a homeless shelter, and Lance Reddick will once again play the role of Charon, the concierge at the Continental.
As for new additions, Donnie Yen, Bill Skarsgård, Hiroyuki Sanada (who was initially approached to play the role of Zero in Chapter 3 but declined due to his work on Avengers: Endgame), Scott Adkins, Shamier Anderson, and Clancy Brown have been cast in undisclosed roles. While many details have still been kept under wraps, some of the cast have shared insight into their upcoming roles.
Skarsgård did open up about his role in a recent interview, saying that the reason he join the fourth film other than being a major fan of blockbusters and the franchise was that his character felt different. Skarsgård also added that his character required no fight training. Shamier Anderson, who will also star in the MCU's upcoming The Marvels, posted a behind-the-scenes video on his Instagram of his intense workout regime along with gun and combat training that hints at his heavy involvement in the action.
Plot
There is no official plot synopsis for the fourth film, but fans may already have a good understanding of what to expect after watching the last film. The finals minutes of that film saw John, now seperated from the High table after breaking his allegiance with them by refusing to kill Winston, being repeatedly shot by Winston (who offered his fealty to the high table at the last second), causing him to fall off of a building. The severely injured John is then secretly handed over to The Bowery King to be cared for, where he also declares war on the high table. Fans can expect the fourth to delve deeper into the assassin filled world and to also, somehow, increase the kill count.
Fishburne spoke to Collider this last summer about his return, also praising the upcoming film's script. "I read the script. It's really, really cool. As much as it's the same world as the other three films, it's just deeper. It's much deeper in terms of the code of the assassin and the relationship that he has with one character in particular who I think Mr. Watanabe is playing... is really the heart and soul of it."
Director Chad Stahelski, who spoke with IndieWire back in 2019, expressed his thoughts on where John Wick's future will lead, hinting that it may not be what fans expect. "John may survive all this s***, but at the end of it, there’s no happy ending. He’s got nowhere to go," Stahelski adds. "Honestly, I challenge you right now, here’s a question to you: How do you f***ing want me to end it? Do you think he’s going to ride off into the f***ing sunset? He’s killed 300 f***ing people and he’s just going to [walk away], everything’s okay? He’s just going to fall in love with a love interest? If you’re this f***ing guy, if this guy really exist[ed], how is this guy’s day going to end? He’s f***ed for the rest of his life. It’s just a matter of time.”
Whether John makes it out alive or not at the end of this series, the John Wick universe is already on track to expand, hopefully bringing new fan-favorite characters along. A spin-off series titled The Continental that will center on a young Winston in the 1970s is already in the works from Stahelski and writer Derek Kolstad while other rumored crossovers involving David Leitch's (who co-directed the first John Wick film with Stahelski) Atomic Blonde and Derek Kolstad's work on Nobody could come into fruition.
John Wick: Chapter 4 is set to release in theatres on May 27th, 2022.