Keanu Reeves is a gem of a human, yet we can’t seem to get enough of the kindly actor dispatching bad guys with a well-choreographed bullet to the head. Production on John Wick 4 wrapped up last fall and the much-anticipated sequel was naturally a big focus of Lionsgate’s presentation at CinemaCon. Thankfully, our own Chris Bumbray has been attending the convention to bring us all the juicy details.
Keanu Reeves and director Chad Stahelski took to the stage to introduce the first trailer for John Wick 4, which opens with Wick having to retrain himself after he nearly died in the last film. He takes refuge with The Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne) but later re-emerges and ends up in France. Bill Skarsgård appears to be playing the bad guy and the trailer is full of amazing shots, including a fight in a nightclub with the sprinklers on and Donnie Yen looking bad-ass during a sword fight, but the money shot of the trailer finds Wick wielding nunchucks and absolutely demolishing bad guys with them. I think we need to see that trailer released asap.
Keanu Reeves once again plays the legendary assassin in John Wick 4 and will be joined by Donnie Yen, Shamier Anderson, Bill Skarsgård, Hiroyuki Sanada, Scott Adkins, Clancy Brown, and Rina Sawayama. The film will also see the return of a few franchise veterans including Laurence Fishburne as The Bowery King, Ian McShane as Winston, manager of the Continental Hotel, and Lance Reddick as Charon, the concierge of the Continental. John Wick: Chapter 4 will debut in theaters on March 24, 2023.
Ballerina, the upcoming John Wick spin-off, was also mentioned, with Ana De Armas confirmed to be starring. The film is said to revolve around a young female assassin who seeks revenge against the people who killed her family.
A small amount of footage from the live-action adaptation of Borderlands was also teased, with Bumbray saying that the colour scheme looks insane. Cate Blanchett stars as Lilith, an infamous treasure hunter with a mysterious past who reluctantly returns to her home planet to find the missing daughter of the universe’s most powerful S.O.B. The footage showcased Blanchett fighting across a cityscape, gun in hand, with Kevin Hart also appearing as Roland and Jack Black voicing Claptrap.
Last but not least, audiences also saw a release date teaser for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, a prequel movie revolving around a young Coriolanus Snow (the character played by Donald Sutherland in the previous movies). The film will hit theaters on November 17, 2023.