John Wick Director Reflects On Sequel Planning & Building Out The ...

John Wick has always set itself apart, but it was not until John Wick: Chapter Two that the franchise was fully defined. Led by Keanu Reeves, the movie series tells the story of former assassin John Wick, who works to secure the chance to retire. After his dog is killed by a mobster's son, the former hitman returns from retirement to kill everyone with a semblance of involvement in his pet's death. The franchise has since grown into a massive behemoth, grossing over $1 billion across the four movies. The John Wick releases also include several spin-offs, with some in development, including Ana de Armas' Ballerina.

In an interview with Screen Rant's Rob Keyes, director Chad Stahelski opened up about the process of turning the first movie into an enormous franchise. While they were admittedly reserved for the first release, many of the unique elements of the universe were developed when planning for John Wick: Chapter Two. Because they did not initially expect to be called for a sequel, Stahelski and Reeves worked together to make a truly "weird" setting. Check out his full explanation below:

They just figured, "Well, how weird can they go, and we'll just do what we can, and it's probably only good for one more." They gave us a pretty long leash. And then it was like Keanu and I got back together and went, "Ooh. Well, we really don't know what to do." We got together with Derek Kolstad, and No. 2 is when we figured things out.

We came up with the idea that there's a Continental in every city. Derek had come up with the idea of markers. Then I was like, "Well, fuck it. If we're going to go that deep, let's go full Lord of the Rings, and we're going to make a fantasy world here and that's how we'll start modeling it...

In the true story of things, John Wick 1 was great. It's my fave, of course, but it wasn't until John Wick 2 that we got asked. Keanu had called up and said, "Hey, Lionsgate just called me. They want to do another one." I was like, "Really, like that?" He's like, "Yeah." We finally found out how well it had done, and Keanu and I went back in and we're like, "Okay, we'll do it, but we'll do it our way. Just tell us what the number is and we'll figure it out, but you can't, because we're going to go weird and we don't want any oversight."

John Wick 2 Changed The Franchise Completely

Stahelski Was More Willing To Take Risks

The original movie did feature some of the elements that would come to define the franchise. The Continental was present, so much so that the hotel's restrictive rules were already in place. Yet, it was not until 2017's Chapter Two that Stahelski would introduce the blood oath markers, the various other Continentals, and the various international settings that Wick would begin to explore. While the first movie certainly showcased the stunts and choreography that would reflect the franchise's uniqueness, the other tropes were not introduced until later.

Just as Wick takes risks each time he targets a member of the High Table, the director takes a serious risk by introducing so many bizarre elements into the franchise. John Wick was originally just another thriller, so introducing such a complicated criminal underground risked completely alienating the core audience, who had not come for a Lord of the Rings-like production. However, it was the right decision that set the franchise apart from its contemporaries, such as Taken, The Equalizer, and Jack Reacher.

What The Sequel Changes Meant For John Wick

John Wick Chapter 2 Let Keanu Reeves Introduce A New World

The first movie certainly did not require a sequel. It wrapped up the titular protagonist's story perfectly and provided a sense of finality that easily satisfied most viewers. The follow-up, however, turned a standalone into a cinematic giant. With John Wick: Chapter 5 confirmed and several spin-offs in development, its growth is continuous. There is not necessarily any end in sight for the fast-growing universe. All that comes from the innovations that Stahelski and Reeves introduced in the original sequel.