Following the announcement of a fifth John Wick movie currently in the works, it will be interesting to see how they approach the new entry into the highly successful franchise. Whether Keanu Reeves will reprise the iconic role for the next installment after the ending of the fourth film remains under question, the future of this universe might not just be limited to Reeves’ John Wick in the future.
Considering that the John Wick films have been a huge cash cow for Lionsgate, it’s reasonable to see why they are adamant about expanding and building their cinematic universe around Wick.
Keanu Reeves’ John Wick universe is set to keep on expanding in the coming years
Although the announcement of a 5th John Wick film being in early development has taken the internet by storm, this isn’t the only thing that Lionsgate is focused on about this franchise’s future. During Lionsgate’s Q4 2023 earnings call, its chairman Joe Drake assured that with Ballerina set to release next year, this universe will keep on expanding with various spin-offs in the coming years. Apart from the prequel series, The Continental, there is another John Wick spin-off series in the works and fans can expect steady releases of John Wick materials in the future. He said,
“Ballerina is the first spinoff that comes out next year. We’re in development on three others, including [John Wick 5] and including television series, The Continental, which will be airing soon. And so, we’re building out the world and when that five movie comes, will be organic — will be organically grown out of how we’re starting to tell those stories. But you can rely on a regular cadence of John Wick.”
But despite the plethora of projects under development to build the cinematic universe, the future of John Wick himself remains uncertain for the time being. But it’s reasonable to assume that both Reeves and Chad Stahelski will reprise their jobs in the fifth installment, however, the director is currently busy crafting another mystery series for this franchise.
Keanu Reeves
Chad Stahelski reflects on working on his mystery John Wick project for Lionsgate
Both Chad Stahelski and Keanu Reeves have showcased their interest in reprising the role, but for now, they have decided to give the character some rest. But it seems, Stahelski has been occupied with another mystery John Wick spin-off series and according to the director, this might allow him to tell stories about other great characters in the universe. He said,
“Lionsgate has been incredibly supportive on this, and we’re really trying to get a John Wick TV show going. And that would allow me to tell a lot of stories that maybe wouldn’t sustain another ginormous feature, but great characters and great stories that we could do in the short form on TV. Which would be fantastic.”
Chad Stahelski
Although we might witness Keanu Reeves’ John Wick in the fifth entry in the franchise, his character might not be the central focus of this universe any longer. With Ana de Armas joining the franchise and several other projects in development, this universe is set to keep on expanding in the coming years.
John Wick: Chapter 4 is available to stream on Apple TV.
Source: Comicbook.com