Few movie series tend to drastically top themselves with each subsequent entry. Yet if there’s one thing the John Wick franchise excels at, it’s surpassing audiences’ expectations formed from its preceding chapter.
Whether jumpstarting Keanu Reeves’ career or reinventing the action genre with its comic book-style narratives, the John Wick series has assuredly become one of the most popular action franchises in recent memory. As audiences await the release of the series’ upcoming spin-off, Ballerina (starring Ana de Armas), the director of John Wick: Chapter 5 has shed light on his plans for the sequel.
In an interview with Empire, filmmaker Chad Stahelski has teased the surprising new directions Chapter 5 will take, including new storylines unrelated to the High Table: the main conflict prevalent throughout the last three John Wick films.
“The saga of John Wick was pretty wrapped up,” Stahleski told Empire. “So the only way to do a 5 is to have a new story that involves John Wick. It’s not a continuation, with the High Table. John dealt with his grief. It will be really different, and everybody [will] see the trailer and go, ‘Holy f***k… I gotta see that.'”
The former Matrix stunt double-turned-mainstream action director also hinted that two upcoming spin-off projects related to John Wick might also factor into Chapter 5‘s main storyline. In particular, Keanu Reeves’ grizzled main character in the film will sees an animated prequel, focusing on his initial retirement from a life of crime. Additionally, the shadowy criminal guild known as the High Table will similarly receive their own spin-off TV series, dubbed Under The High Table.
“The John Wick TV show and the animation are big priorities,” Stahelski said. “Our idea is to try some thing and explore some threads and use those two properties to catapult us forward into the ideas for John Wick 5.”
