John Wick: Chapter 4 caused a stir among the fans. Mainly because the film sees Keanu Reeves’ character, John Wick, sacrifice himself in a gun duel with his old friend Caine, played by Donnie Yen. However, interestingly Reeves hinted that he might not be finished with the role just yet. In an interview, the actor said that he wouldn’t rule out a return to the franchise, but that it would have to be “the right story.”
Instead of using his last bullet to kill his buddy, a badly wounded Wick instead murders Bill Skarsgård’s villainous Marquis Vincent de Gramont. A fatally wounded Wick then receives a vision of his dead wife, Bridget Moynihan’s Helen, and perishes on the steps of the Sacré-Cœur. The viewers subsequently see Ian McShane’s Winston and Laurence Fishburne’s Bowery King visit John Wick’s grave, seemingly making the hitman’s demise canonical.
Then why the rumors about John Wick: Chapter 5?
The ending of John Wick: Chapter 4 has been met with mixed reactions from fans. Some have praised the film for its emotional impact, while others have criticized it for being too predictable. hence, coming up with another chapter to satisfy the audience shouldn’t exactly be a bad idea.
While discussing the fourth installment of the John Wick franchise and his role in the same, Keanu Reeves said,
“During the press tour for Chapter 3, we started to think about, if the audience likes it, and we get the chance, what would that movie be? What would the story be? The first conversation we had was, ‘Why? Why make it?'” says Reeves. “And the note behind that note is, what’s the story? And for he and I, it felt like, what was authentic and true was John Wick’s journey to death. That was the first idea; that was the why of why we made the movie.”
However, when asked if his character was really, really dead, Reeves stated, “I don’t know, I guess I’m going to have to lean on never say never.” Moreover, he further revealed that he would not do a John Wick movie without Chad Stahelski.
Does this mean John Wick: Chapter 5 with Keanu Reeves is in the cards?
In June 2023, Basil Iwanyk, producer of John Wick prequel The Continental told IGN that the fifth chapter is currently in the creative process. However, he did add that the makers do not have a story yet.
“John Wick 4 was embraced enough by the critics and the audience that it’s kind of an organic and natural next step to do John Wick 5. I think that there’s no question that it’s in development, but right now the story isn’t there yet. And until the story is there, it isn’t… It’s real on something we’re trying to figure out. But we haven’t settled on what that movie looks like or feels like.”
With Hollywood writers currently on strike, it’s understandable why the makers aren’t ready with a story yet. However, despite the possibility of a fifth installment, it’s not clear if the next chapter will see Keanu Reeves embodying the titular character. After the climax of Chapter 4, it will be interesting to see how the makers will choose to carry the story ahead. Will they bring Reeves back from the dead, or will we see a new John Wick?
Source: Yahoo News, IGN
