John Wick: Chapter 5 Confirmed at Cinemacon
Not even death can stop the Boogeyman. During Cinemacon, the festival held in Las Vegas during which Hollywood studios pitch their upcoming cinema slate to movie theater owners, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chairman Adam Fogelson assured the crowd that what the company’s former president and, later, chair, Joe Drake, said during an earnings call this past May was true: John Wick: Chapter 5 is on the way, with Chad Stahelski back to direct and Keanu Reeves returning as the titular man-of-few-words assassin. (How few words? I’d say about 80% of Reeves’ dialogue in these movies is variations of “Yeeeeeaaaaahhhhh.”) It’s been a bit of a rocky road to this point, with that earnings call being followed by Stahelski saying that he and Reeves saw John Wick: Chapter 4 as the end of the line for the series and the character, though they’d be open to doing another one if the right script came along. Then, in another earnings call in November, Drake revealed that the script for John Wick: Chapter 5 was being written, though he didn’t say by whom. Earlier this year, Drake stepped down as chair of Lionsgate, and Fogelson replaced him. Then, at the beginning of March, Keanu Reeves was asked if another John Wick movie was in the cards, and he said, “Well, you know the character’s dead.” That seemed like the last word on the topic… until today. Now, we’re officially getting more Baba Yaga vengeance sometime in the future. Here’s what Fogelson had to say (via The Hollywood Reporter):
“Keanu, Chad, Basil and Erica would not return unless they had something truly phenomenal and fresh to say with these characters and this world… We can’t wait for audiences to see where the journey takes us next.”
And this is how producers Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee described John Wick: Chapter 5:
“It’s so important to get this story right and give John’s story the proper next step. It’s exciting to take the first step on that road.”
Lionsgate is desperate to keep the John Wick franchise alive, and I can understand why; as much as I like this studio because of the risks it often takes, it’s had a lot of duds in the past couple of years. Every studio wants at least one sure-fire franchise it can lean on in case it falls on hard times, and John Wick is it for Lionsgate; I remember Chad Stahelski describing their reaction to Wick dying at the end of the last film as them saying, “Are you fucking insane?” And this is absolutely a sequel, not a prequel or anything; the prequel angle is being explored through Ballerina, which comes out in June and features Wick in a supporting role, and the producers make it clear that this is the next step for Wick. That means they’ll have to bring the relentless killing machine with a soft spot for our four-legged friends back to life, most likely by saying he didn’t really die at the end of Chapter 4. This was a common fan theory since we technically didn’t see him die (although the way it was filmed, the dialogue, the themes at play, and the references to past lines and events heavily suggested he did). I don’t know how else they can bring him back unless they resort to mysticism, which would be jumping the shark even for a world as silly as that of John Wick. (I love these movies, but they’re not exactly grounded and gritty; it’s a fantastical world of larger-than-life underworld figures, which is an observation, not a criticism.)
Actually, one could argue they’re jumping the shark by bringing John Wick back at all. Chapter 4 gave the character and his story a definitive ending that brought him full circle, back to leaving the world of murder-for-hire to be a husband to his wife. That was the dream they took from him and the one he spent four movies killing his way back to – only to realize that it was in giving his life to protect others that he could attain the peace he lost, not in taking still more lives. (Although Chapter 4’s villain, the Marquis, was one more for the road.) As much as I want to see more Wick action, it’s a shame to undo that ending. But that’s what’s happening, so all we can do is hope for the best and, considering Stahelski is back in the director’s chair, be assured that we’ll see some more terrific action sequences with Reeves playing what has become his signature character once more. (Neo has been well and truly ruined by now, and as much as I love The Matrix, he was never as deep or interesting as Wick – and I would argue that was by design.) I have a list of things I want without having time to give it much thought: I want Ian McShane’s Winston and Laurence Fishburne’s Bowery King back, and I want to see the High Table’s world opened up even more. But what I want to see most is a truly great villain to pit against Wick, someone who’s a real threat to him and gives him a run for his money like nobody has yet. Whatever happens, and despite my trepidation at the risks of continuing the story, I’m excited for another John Wick movie, and I hope for the best.
Let us know what you think of John Wick: Chapter 5 being confirmed in the comments!
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