Posted in: Lionsgate, Movies | Tagged: Ballerina, ian mcshane, john wick

Ian McShane: The John Wick Spinoff Ballerina Is "Very Different"

While we still don't know much about the John Wick spinoff film Ballerina, franchise regular Ian McShane teases that it will be "very different."

Last year, the world of John Wick expanded onto Peacock with its first television show, and it made minimal impact. That was unfortunate, but you don't always get these things right on the first try. What we didn't get from The Continental, maybe we'll be able to get from Ballerina, which is the first spinoff movie in the franchise. The details are still pretty slim on this one, but we know there will be some familiar faces in this film, like Keanu Reeves as John Wick, the late Lance Reddick as Charon, and Ian McShane as Winston. Many of these faces have been running around this universe from day one, and McShane recently spoke briefly to Variety about Ballerina. "'Ballerina' is very different," he says. "We had these three scenes, and we added another couple of scenes at the Continental." McShane also explained that the process on set regarding Wilson's decisions was very collaborative. McShane explained that director Chad Stahelski "trusts me with knowing my character, so I try to bring a little twist to it each time."

Ballerina is still six months away, and it's unclear when Lionsgate will start marketing this film. A Super Bowl spot? CinemaCon weekend? We'll have to see how things play out as the year marches on. While The Continental might have soured people's love for this world a little, just remember how freaking good those first four movies are. As for a fifth film, McShane says, "We've been having a few scenarios," so it sounds like there is still a big question mark hanging over a fifth chapter. Honestly, the ending to the fourth movie was great, and exploring this universe with other characters is probably the best direction to go. Then Reeves can pop in and out instead of committing to an entire film, much like he is for Ballerina.

John Wick: From Indie Darling To Franchise Juggernaut

It's still a little amazing that John Wick, the action movie in 2014 where the only real notable thing about it was that they managed to snag Reeves as its leading man, has turned into the franchise juggernaut it is today. That is what happens when you have good people working on a film from the beginning because it would have been easy for John Wick to fade into obscurity with a ton of other disposable action movies. However, the creative team of director Chad Stahelski and screenwriter Derek Kolstad took the time to build a fascinating world around that action movie. The world of John Wick is the thing that everyone fell in love with on top of the fact that Reeves is the best at this.

So it wasn't surprising that a sequel was greenlit, and it was even less surprising that in 2017 it was announced that a spinoff film and television shows were in the works. The Continental focused on the hotel that plays a central part in the assassin world that John Wick moves in, and Ballerina will be something different. Len Wiseman was brought on to direct with Wiseman & Shay Hatten and Emerald Fennell working on the screenplay, and Hatten also has a story credit. The cast includes de Armas and returning John Wick players Keanu Reeves, Ian McShane, Anjelica Huston, and Lance Reddick. We also have some new faces, including Norman Reedus, Catalina Sandino Moreno, and Gabriel Byrne. We don't know much about the story, but it does have a release date of June 4, 2024.

While we still don't know much about the John Wick spinoff film Ballerina, franchise regular Ian McShane teases that it will be "very different."

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