John Wick (film series)

John Wick

Theatrical poster for John Wick (2014)
Created by Chad Stahelski
David Leitch
Derek Kolstad
Original work John Wick (2014)
Owner Summit Entertainment
Films and television
Film(s)
Games
Video game(s) John Wick Chronicles
Audio
Soundtrack(s) John Wick: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

John Wick is a series of action films directed by Chad Stahelski and David Leitch that follow the eponymous hero, a retired but deadly hitman seeking vengeance, portrayed by Keanu Reeves.

The series began in 2014 with the release of John Wick, which was written by Derek Kolstad and produced by Basil Iwanyk. It was followed by the sequel John Wick: Chapter 2, which was released in 2017. The two films were successful both critically and commercially. The first film grossed $88.8 million worldwide and holds an 85% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, [1][2] while the second has a rating of 89% and has grossed $171.2 million worldwide.[3][4]

Overview

The premise for John Wick was conceived by screenwriter Derek Kolstad who began work on a treatment about a retired contract killer coming out to seek vengeance, entitled Scorn.[5] After one month of work, he had completed the first draft of the screenplay and once he had addressed several issues he pitched the script to various clients, garnering at least three offers.[6] When he first started thinking about writing the script, Kolstad was influenced by film-noir classics and the themes of revenge and the antihero and the occurrences of what may play out if "The worst man in existence found salvation […] When the source of his salvation is ripped from him […] Do the gates of Hades open?"[7] For Kolstad, both Alistair MacLean and Stephen King were influences in the creating of the story of John Wick in terms of characterisation and world-building, stating, "[…] MacLean could build a world, and King could surprise you by what the main character truly was capable of."

On December 3, 2012, it was announced that Thunder Road Pictures had bought the script with discretionary funds, with Kolstad agreeing due to Thunder Road's plan to make the film straight away.[8] When Basil Iwanyk head of Thunder Road Pictures had first read Kolstad's original screenplay, he was immediately drawn to the main character of Wick, stating, "The tone of the script was subversive and really fun." He also admired the emotional weight and action theme of the piece. After Thunder Road had optioned the script, Kolstad spent additional months refurbishing the script with them. In the original script, the character of John Wick was written with "a man in his mid-sixties" to play the role, given the title character’s fabled reputation as a revered and respected assassin. However, Iwanyk was of the belief that this was irrelevant and bent the original vision ever so slightly, stating, "Instead, we decided to look for someone who is not literally older, but who has a seasoned history in the film world."[9]

On May 7, 2013, it was announced that Keanu Reeves began negotiations to star in the piece in April, and was later confirmed as the film's male lead, after Iwanyk and Peter Lawson of Thunder Road showed him the script, to which he thought to be full of potential and further stated, "I love the role, but you want the whole story, the whole ensemble to come to life."[10] Reeves and Kolstad had worked closely together on further developing the screenplay and the story,[6][11] with the screenwriter stating, "We spent as much time developing the other characters as we did his. [Keanu] recognizes that the strength of the storyline lies in even the smallest details."[12] The title of the film was later changed from Scorn to John Wick, as according to Kolstad, "Keanu liked the name so much, that Reeves kept telling everyone that he was making a film called 'John Wick'", and the producers agreed, changing the title.

During story discussions for John Wick, Reeves contacted Chad Stahelski and David Leitch, who he originally met on the set of The Matrix,[13] to see if they were interested in choreographing or directing the action of the piece.[14] Reeves admired Stahelski and Leitch's work performing, choreographing and coordinating, stating that, "When I got the script... I immediately thought of Chad and Dave for the action design, but I was secretly hoping they'd want to direct it."[14] he then added, "I knew that they would love the genre and I knew that they would love John Wick. And I thought the worlds that get created – the real world and then this underworld – would be attractive to them, and it was."[14] After reading Kolstad's script, Stahelski and Leitch, told Reeves they wanted to tell the story of John Wick, as they both had a desire to get involved with a project as directors. Impressed with Reeves' enthusiasm and the quality of the script, Stahelski and Leitch, told him that they wished to direct the film and later presented him with their version of the story which was based on "[…] the idea of [Wick] as an urban legend, a thriller assassin movie with a realistic vibe and an otherworldly setting." Impressed with their concept, Reeves supported the pair, and Stahelski and Leitch pitched the idea to the studio, who hired them to direct, contrary to their initial request of directing the film's second unit. On May 7, 2013, it was announced that Stahelski and Leitch were to direct the film together as a team,[15][16] though it was later ruled by the Directors Guild of America that only Stahelski would be given the director credit. Leitch was credited as a producer.[17]

Principal photography for the first film was confirmed to have begun in New York City with an original shooting schedule meant to have occurred from September 25 to December 5.[18][19][20] with the filming process scheduled to continue in and around New York City and greater New York area.[21]

In February 2015, directors Chad Stahelski and David Leitch stated that a John Wick sequel had begun development, which was later titled John Wick: Chapter 2.[22][23] The same month Jon Feltheimer, CEO of Lionsgate, stated during a conference call that "We see John Wick as a multiple-title action franchise". Additionally, it was reported that Kolstad would return to write the screenplay.[24] In May 2015, it was confirmed that a sequel was greenlit, and Lionsgate would be selling the film at the Cannes Film Festival. Principal photography on the film began on October 26, 2015, in New York City.[25] It would later move to Rome and later resumed in Montreal, Canada on October 27, 2016.

Films

John Wick (2014)

John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)

John Wick: Chapter 3 (TBA)

In October 2016, Stahelski stated that a third film is in the works.[26] In June 2017, it was reported that Kolstad will return to pen the screenplay for the third film[27]

Influences

Director Chad Stahelski said influences on John Wick included; The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), Point Blank (1967), Le Cercle Rouge (1970), and The Killer (1989).[28]

Stahelski said about The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, "Look at Clint Eastwood in [the film] – there is so much back-story unsaid there. We're big fans of leaving it to your imagination. We just give you some gold coins, and then it's, "Where do the gold coins come from?" We'll get to that. Have your imagination do some work there." He also said Point Blank (1967) influenced John Wick: "One of the biggest inspirations for the film was Point Blank. We watched it on a loop in our office and there are a couple homages to that [in John Wick]."[29] Park Chan-wook's The Vengeance Trilogy (2002–2005) and Lee Jeong-beom's The Man from Nowhere (2010) influenced the film due to "[their] minimalist composition and graphic nature."[30]

For screenwriter Derek Kolstad, both Alistair MacLean and Stephen King were huge influences in the creation of the story of John Wick in terms of characterisation and world-building, stating, with himself stating, "MacLean could build a world, and King could surprise you by what the main character truly was capable of."[31] Outside of films, Stahelski and Leitch drew inspiration from the visual stylings of the '60s and '70s as well as cinematic influences, including Sergio Leone, Akira Kurosawa, Steve McQueen, Lee Marvin, William Friedkin and Sam Peckinpah. With Stahelski himself stating, "All the way back to Kurosawa up to Sergio Leone. We like the spaghetti western sensibility there, some of the composition." Albeit inspiration and emulation from the noir film genre, Stahelski too added that, "Noir maybe was sort of less impactful for us than the other sort of westerns and Kurosawa and things like that. I think we wanted to make this hard-boiled character."[28][29][32]

Cast and characters

The following is a list of cast members who portrayed characters appearing in John Wick film series.

Character Film
John Wick Chapter 2
John Wick Keanu Reeves
Winston Ian McShane
Helen Wick Bridget Moynahan
Aurelio John Leguizamo
Charon Lance Reddick
Jimmy Thomas Sadoski
Marcus Willem Dafoe  
Viggo Tarasov Michael Nyqvist  
Iosef Tarasov Alfie Allen  
Ms. Perkins Adrianne Palicki  
Santino D’Antonio   Riccardo Scamarcio
Cassian   Common
Ares   Ruby Rose
Abram Tarasov   Peter Stormare
Julius   Franco Nero
The Bowery King   Laurence Fishburne

Crew

The following is a list of crew members who have participated in the making of John Wick film series.

Film Director(s) Writer(s) Producer(s) Director(s) of photography Editor(s) Composer(s)
John Wick Chad Stahelski
David Leitch (uncredited)		 Derek Kolstad Basil Iwanyk
David Leitch
Chad Stahelski (uncredited)
Eva Longoria
Michael Witherill		 Jonathan Sela Elísabet Ronalds Tyler Bates
Joel J. Richard
John Wick: Chapter 2 Chad Stahelski Basil Iwanyk
Erica Lee		 Dan Laustsen Evan Schiff
John Wick: Chapter 3 TBA Basil Iwanyk TBA TBA TBA

Reception

Box Office

Film Release date Box office gross Budget Ref(s)
North America Other
territories		 Worldwide
John Wick October 24, 2014 $43,037,835 $45,723,826 $88,761,661 $20,000,000 [33]
John Wick: Chapter 2 February 10, 2017 $92,029,184 $79,189,198 $171,218,382 $40,000,000 [34]
Total $135,067,019 $124,913,024 $259,980,043 $60,000,000

Critical reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the first film has an approval rating of 85% based on 193 reviews, with an average rating of 6.9/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Stylish, thrilling, and giddily kinetic, John Wick serves as a satisfying return to action for Keanu Reeves – and what looks like it could be the first of a franchise."[35] Metacritic, another review aggregator, assigned the film a weighted average score of 68 out of 100, based on 39 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[36] CinemaScore reported that audiences gave the film a "B" grade, on an A+ to F scale.[37][38]

On Rotten Tomatoes, John Wick: Chapter 2 has an approval rating of 89% based on 197 reviews, and an average rating of 7.3/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "John Wick: Chapter 2 does what a sequel should—which in this case means doubling down on the non-stop, thrillingly choreographed action that made its predecessor so much fun."[39] On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating, the film has a score of 75 out of 100, based on 43 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[40] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.[41]

John Wick Chronicles (video game)

On August 7, 2015, Lionsgate and Starbreeze Studios announced a partnership to develop a first-person shooter virtual reality game based on the film for the HTC Vive/Steam VR. Development will be headed by Grab Games, with Starbreeze set to publish. WEVR will develop an introductory experience for the game. The game was released on February 9, 2017 with the name John Wick Chronicles.[42] and has a standalone narrative based on the Continental Hotel.[43][44] Additionally, John Wick content – a free Character Pack and a chargeable Weapons Pack – was released for the Payday 2 games on October 20, 2016 as a cross-promotion.[45][46]

References

  1. ↑ "John Wick (2014)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
  2. ↑ "John Wick (2014)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
  3. ↑ "John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
  4. ↑ "John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 7, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Derek Kolstad Interview". The Action Elite. July 30, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2012.
  6. 1 2 "JOHN WICK, HIT MAN". whoa is (not) me. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Reeves returns in wicked action flick". AsiaOne Entertainment. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  8. ↑ "THE HIT LIST 2012 (FULL LIST)". Tracking Board. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  9. ↑ "KEANU REEVES PLAYS HITMAN IN "JOHN WICK" – Surprises with Unexpected Use Of Artillery In Action Scenes". MovieNews.Me. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Keanu Reeves plays hitman in ‘John Wick’ – Surprises with unexpected use of artillery in action scenes". Inquirer EX Movies. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  11. ↑ "on his dedication to his craft". whoa is (not) me. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Keanu Reeves film 'John Wick' gets positive reviews". PhilSTAR. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Interview: Chad Stahelski & David Leitch". Dorkshelf. October 24, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  14. 1 2 3 "Veteran stuntmen become directors with 'John Wick'". Yahoo. October 17, 2014. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Keanu Reeves to star in John Wick". Screen International. May 7, 2013. Retrieved May 7, 2013.
  16. ↑ "Keanu Reeves To Play "John Wick"". Dark Horizons. May 7, 2013. Retrieved May 7, 2013.
  17. ↑ "‘JOHN WICK’". Outtakes Atlanta. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  18. ↑ "John Wick Has a New Start Date". Mr-Reeves. September 25, 2013. Retrieved September 25, 2013.
  19. ↑ "John Wick to be shot in New York in October". USA Production News. September 25, 2013. Retrieved September 25, 2013.
  20. ↑ "Bridget Moynahan Opposite Keanu Reeves in John Wick". Overallsite. October 17, 2013. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
  21. ↑ "RUSH CALL: ‘John Wick’ Starring Keanu Reeves Casting Call for Featured Extra Role in New York City". The Hollywood Reporter. November 1, 2013. Retrieved November 1, 2013.
  22. ↑ Guerrasio, Jason (February 4, 2015). "'John Wick' Directors Are Already Working on a Sequel (Exclusive)". Movies.com. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  23. ↑ "John Wick Sequel Already In The Works". Final Reel. February 5, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  24. ↑ "Lionsgate Planning ‘John Wick’ Sequel". Variety. February 6, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  25. ↑ "On the Set for 10/30/15: Keanu Reeves Starts on John Wick Sequel, Seth Rogen and Zac Efron Wrap Up Neighbors 2". SSN Insider. October 30, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  26. ↑ Page, Aubrey (October 10, 2016). "‘John Wick 3’ Already in the Works, Reveals Director Chad Stahelski; ‘Chapter 2’ Details Teased". Collider.com. Archived from the original on October 10, 2016. Retrieved October 10, 2016.
  27. ↑ Kit, Borys (June 1, 2017). "'John Wick 3' Brings Back Writer Derek Kolsta(Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on June 1, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
  28. 1 2 "‘John Wick’ Directors Talk World-Building & Not Killing a Dog in the Sequel". ScreenRant. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  29. 1 2 "Keanu Reeves Came Up With a Badass Hashtag for "John Wick"". Complex. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  30. ↑ "Chad Stahelski & David Leitch, longtime stunt coordinators & performers, founders of 87Eleven Action Design, and the filmmakers responsible for the new Keanu Reeves action-thriller ‘JOHN WICK’... Ask us anything!". Reddit. Retrieved September 30, 2014.
  31. ↑ "An interview with Derek Kolstad, screenwriter of John Wick". Flickering Myth. Retrieved October 24, 2014.
  32. ↑ "‘John Wick’ Directors Talk World-Building & Not Killing a Dog in the Sequel". PixMovies. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
  33. ↑ "John Wick (2014)- Box Office Mojo". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
  34. ↑ "John Wick: Chapter Two (2017) - Box Office Mojo". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
  35. ↑ "John Wick (2014)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  36. ↑ "John Wick Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
  37. ↑ "CinemaScore – John Wick". CinemaScore. Retrieved October 27, 2014.
  38. ↑ "‘Ouija’ Says Yes To No. 1, ‘John Wick’ No. 2 With A Bullet, ‘St. Vincent,’ Superb Exit Polls – B.O. Weekend". Deadline. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  39. ↑ "John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved April 5, 2017.
  40. ↑ "John Wick: Chapter 2 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
  41. ↑ "John Wick: Chapter 2". CinemaScore on Twitter. February 11, 2017. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  42. ↑ "John Wick Chronicles".
  43. ↑ McCown, Alex (August 7, 2015). "John Wick is being turned into a VR game, hopefully sans puppy death". Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  44. ↑ Sofka, Samantha (August 7, 2015). "There's a John Wick VR Game on the Way". nerdist.com. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  45. ↑ "Payday 2: John Wick Weapon Pack".
  46. ↑ "Payday 2: John Wick Character Pack".
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