Action movies have always been a staple in the industry since the early ’70s when the likes of Clint Eastwood, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Bruce Willis made the genre widely popular. However, if there’s any franchise that totally revamped the genre in the last decade with fast and sleek action sequences choreographed with impeccable accuracy, then it’s John Wick. Starring Keanu Reeves, the John Wick franchise has become a global phenomenon for its fascinating violence, stylish characters, and a simple yet gripping plotline. As Reeves is currently working on John Wick: Chapter 4, the fifth installment is also in development. Moreover, Lionsgate has also started working on a spin-off show that will delve into the dark realms of the underworld crime scene: The Continental.
Also read: John Wick 2: Super-Crazy Facts About Keanu Reeves’ Performance
In the movies, the Continental is shown to be a place of great importance, almost to the point of reverence. First introduced in John Wick (2014), the Continental is a chain of high-end hotels that act as a safe haven for everyone involved in the world of crime, even for ‘excommunicados’. Unsurprisingly, the mysterious place plays an important role in developing the plot throughout the movies as the rule of not shedding blood on the grounds of the Continental is considered sacrosanct. As a result, Lionsgate is now pursuing an aggressive expansion by developing a series revolving around the Continental. But unfortunately, Keanu Reeves won’t be reprising his role as Baba-Yaga in the show since the series is set in the 1970s. Ian McShane, who plays the role of Winston will not appear on the screen either. However, it is expected that the veteran actor might be involved in narrating the series.
Also read: John Wick Writer Talks Sequel Plans & When Franchise Could End
Set in the past, The Continental will feature a younger version of Winston while delving into the myth and lore of the underworld crime scene. According to Deadline, the show will focus on fleshing out the mythology of the John Wick franchise. Kevin Beggs, the President of Lionsgate Television Group has revealed a few details for the upcoming series that surely sounds promising. Here’s the excerpt:
“We took a lot of pitches, and then the creative team from this obscure little show called Wayne that was on YouTube came to us with their take,” said Beggs. “We were really blown away because it solved a bunch of problems and was super exciting, about a crumbling New York in the 1970s with a garbage strike that has piled up bags of garbage to the third floor of most brownstones, the mafia muscling in on that business which is why in The Sopranos he’s in the sanitation business, and other things that are really real as an interesting backdrop to explore the origins of The Continental which is famously within the movie franchise the assassin’s hotel in which you cannot kill anyone on the hotel grounds, but of course if you step one foot off you’re fair game, and that’s employed to great effect in many of the plots in the movies. Running all of that is Winston, who is played by Ian McShane.”
“What we’re exploring in The Continental is the young Winston and how it came to be that he and his team of confederates found their way into this hotel which we have met for the first time in the movie franchise 40 years later. That’s the arena. I won’t give away more than that, but Starz really leaned into this take also, and they have been great collaborators. And how we’ve approached this first season is as three essentially 90-minute events which you could construe as a limited series or a limited event series.”
Are you excited for The Continental to take a deep dive into the rich and frightening world of the underworld? Let us know in the comments below.
John Wick: Chapter 4 is scheduled to release on May 27, 2022.
