Though hardcore fans may have seen the John Wick movies countless times and combed through
them for references, fun facts, and more, the mysterious world of everyone's favorite
dog-loving assassin still holds plenty of secrets.
Thanks to the incredibly detailed world of the John Wick films, from John's intense backstory
as a hitman nicknamed "Baba Yaga" to the hotel that caters to some of the world's deadliest
assassins, many fans might have assumed that the first film was based on a novel and adapted
for film.
Believe it or not, John Wick was actually a completely original script.
In 2012, writer Derek Kolstad developed the idea and started work on a project originally
entitled Scorn, about a man who trafficked in evil and finally gets some sort of redemption,
only to lose it.
"You know the consequences."
"I'm not that guy anymore."
After a few studios showed interest, he sold it to Thunder Road Pictures because they promised
to make the movie as soon as possible.
Though Wick was originally written as a much older retired hitman, Kolstad revised the
script once Thunder Road purchased the rights, aided by Keanu Reeves.
The film might not have been based on a comic book or video game, but the character of John
Wick has made the leap to both.
Dynamite Entertainment has since released a comic book series about Wick's origin story,
and gamers can get into Wick's mindset by playing a VR shooter called John Wick Chronicles.
For the full effect, though, make sure you play a few hours of Nintendogs first.
From Bill & Ted to Speed, Keanu Reeves has appeared in an impressive roster of famous
films.
In 1999, however, he stepped into what was considered to be a career-defining role as
Neo in the Matrix film series, a trilogy and universe that set new standards for action
films and gave pop culture one of its best theories about alternate realities.
As the techno-mystical Neo, "The One" who can control the synthetic reality of the Matrix,
Reeves was cemented as a true action star, which made him an ideal star for the story
of the assassin that all the other assassins are afraid of.
"I once saw him kill three men in a bar… with a pencil."
Beyond sharing a lead actor, The Matrix and the John Wick film series have quite a lot
in common.
The two directors on the first film, David Leitch and Chad Stahelski, did stunts on The
Matrix, and Stahelski was actually Reeves' stuntman.
John Wick: Chapter 2 reunited Reeves with Laurence Fishburne, who appeared as Neo's
mentor Morpheus in The Matrix, and die hard fans may have caught another connection as
well; Randall Duk Kim, who played the Keymaker in The Matrix Reloaded, showed up as a doctor
in the first John Wick film.
Keanu Reeves had plenty of input on the film, and worked closely with writer David Kolstad,
who said Reeves was closely attuned to even the smallest details that could help flesh
out his otherwise mysterious character.
With that in mind, it's no surprise that he turned to former crew members from The Matrix
to help him create a great action film, not just for stunts, but for the directors.
Though Reeves initially reached out to David Leitch and Chad Stahelski to see if the two
veteran fight choreographers would simply design the film's action, he hoped they would
direct.
Luckily for Reeves, they were more than happy to take on the challenge.
Having worked with Reeves extensively in the past, Leitch and Stahelski were familiar with
both his prowess and his process, making stunts and fights on John Wick that much more seamless.
Both Leitch and Stahelski have credited their work on The Matrix as an inspiration for John
Wick as well as a guiding light for their overall careers.
Stahelski has said that not just John Wick, but most films he's worked on wouldn't exist
without The Matrix, and both directors have said that watching Lana and Lilly Wachowski
work was a master class in directing action that still had an emotional core.
Throughout his career, Keanu Reeves has become an experienced stuntman in his own right,
learning countless forms of fighting and performing many of his own stunts.
John Wick is no exception.
To prepare for the role, Reeves spent months training with veterans from SWAT teams as
well as former Navy SEALs.
This was largely due to Leitch and Stahelski's insistence that the star learn entirely new
methods of fighting for the film rather than relying on his previous martial arts experience.
Reeves went on to do a large amount of the stunts seen in John Wick, and most of them
with no double in John Wick Chapter 2, where the stunts and fights far surpassed the first
film, upping the ante for Reeves as well as for loyal viewers.
Early footage from John Wick 3 shows even more death-defying action, proving that even
as he ages, he's still more than capable of stunning audiences with his stunt work.
Actors sidelining as producers isn't uncommon, but one of the producers responsible for John
Wick's arrival into movie theaters might still come as a surprise to most fans.
According to the DVD commentary, Eva Longoria, best known for her role on Desperate Housewives
as well as her various modeling contracts, is accredited producer on the first Wick film.
Leitch and Stahelski both noted that they've never met her, but they're grateful to her
for "writing a check."
"Denomination?"
"Seven million."
"Processing, please hold."
Whether you knew it or not, we have Longoria to thank for funding one of the century's
best action movies.
Leitch and Stahelski obviously drew from their experience working on other action films,
but John Wick also drew its unique tone from everything from classic action movies to horror
novels.
The two directors cited several direct influences on the film, which ranged from the classic
Clint Eastwood Western The Good, The Bad and the Ugly to crime films like Point Blank and
foreign releases like The Killer, directed by Hong Kong action auteur John Woo.
Interestingly, while the film has the feeling of a neo-noir thriller, the directors have
said that there wasn't a lot of noir influence on John Wick.
Instead, they invoked directors like Sergio Leone and Akira Kurosawa instead.
Kurosawa in particular, well known for incredibly influential samurai films like Seven Samurai,
Yojimbo, and Throne of Blood comes up quite frequently when the two discuss the first
film in the series.
Beyond Kurosawa, Leitch and Stahelski have also mentioned looking to classic action stars
and directors from the 1970s and 1980s for inspiration, but their world-building was
influenced by something outside of film.
Writer Derek Kolstad mentioned Stephen King as a huge influence, especially to show how
far a broken man will go, a common theme in King's many horror novels.
Even though Stahelski and Leitch technically co-directed the first John Wick film, the
rules of the Director's Guild of America meant that only Stahelski could be credited as the
director, while Leitch was instead listed among the film's producers.
Though the two clearly maintained a good professional relationship, they parted ways for the second
film, and Stahelski went on to direct John Wick Chapter 2 as well as John Wick Chapter
3: Parabellum by himself.
Meanwhile, Leitch embarked on an incredibly lucrative career of his own.
The same year Stahelski helmed John Wick 2, Leitch directed Atomic Blonde, an action thriller
starring Charlize Theron that also immediately became famous for its incredible action set
pieces, especially its signature one-take fight in a stairwell.
After that, Leitch took the reins on Deadpool 2, the second outing for Ryan Reynolds' foul-mouthed
mercenary, and Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw.
Clearly, his departure from John Wick didn't hurt this stuntman-turned-director one bit,
and he also stays in touch with Stahelski to help with ideas in an advisory role.
It's fortunate for the John Wick series that it's been able to retain most of the creative
team throughout all of the movies, especially director Chad Stahelski and writer Derek Kolstad,
both of whom have been working on Wick since the very beginning.
It's clear that there's plenty of material to mine from the John Wick universe, and Stahelski,
along with plenty of audience members, hopes that the series goes on for quite some time.
Stahelski noted that Reeves was heavily responsible for the story behind his character, and said
that he would happily spend the rest of his career existing within John Wick's dangerous,
violent world, adding,
"I enjoy making these movies because there's no limit.
We create our own mythology."
Considering the success Stahelski has enjoyed with the Wick franchise thus far, it's certainly
understandable that he'd be content to keep telling this seamlessly endless story.
One of the many things that fans love about the John Wick series is the careful and detailed
world in which the main character lives and kills, which is full of small details without
being obvious or clichéd.
Throughout most of the first film, audiences are actually unaware of Wick's past until
other criminals realize that one of the most dangerous hitmen alive is coming out of "retirement."
"People keep asking if I'm back, and I haven't really had an answer… but now yeah, I'm
thinking I'm back."
It isn't until he returns to the Continental, the heart of this underground world, to begin
seeking his revenge, that the world-building truly begins in earnest.
In interviews, Leitch and Stahelski have divulged plenty of details about the world of the film,
including little ones that fans may not have caught during a casual viewing.
One such detail is that no "innocents" die in the John Wick series, which includes police
officers, and not only are police officers spared by the assassins, they have their own
underground which works in tandem with the criminal underground, and each side essentially
leaves the other alone to do their job.
"You, uh, working again?"
"No, just sorting some stuff out."
All in all, it's pretty sophisticated for a worldwide crime syndicate responsible for
brutal murders.
Yet another perfect example of world-building in the John Wick series is the use of the
coins, which hitmen like Wick can use as currency for everything from a hotel room to a well-stirred
cocktail or discrete dead body disposal.
Since these prices seem fairly inconsistent, to say the least, fans have worked tirelessly
to try and figure out exactly how the gold coin-based economy actually works within the
criminal underground.
"Hey Harry… you keen on earning a coin?"
Some experts have even weighed in to say that this is fairly realistic when it comes to
organized crime, while others have speculated that by pricing everything at the same point,
the Continental prevents assassins from overstaying their welcome at the hotel, forcing them to
use it as a simple stop during their missions.
As far as the directors are concerned, their view is that while the pricing is all over
the place, it also doesn't matter, because that's not really what the coins are about.
Leitch and Stahelski have said that they're essentially "business cards" that allow point
of entry as well as indicating that the coin-holder is "in the know."
Wondering about the currency value is, ultimately, missing the point.
It's about the custom, not about getting change back for your closet full of AK-47s.
The hotel in the films, the Continental, is shrouded in mystery.
There are a few very important, very clear rules, including the use of the gold coins
and the absolute prohibition of killing on the grounds…
"And the Continental?"
"You killed a man on company grounds, Jonathan, you leave me no choice but to declare you
excommunicado."
.... but naturally, fans want to know a whole lot more about how this place works.
Luckily, the minds behind John Wick, including star Keanu Reeves, are working on a new part
of their world that might explain some long-standing mysteries about the hotel, its guests, and
its history.
In early 2018, it was announced that Starz would be developing a television series based
on the John Wick universe called The Continental which would, as the name implies, focus on
the hotel.
Reeves is listed as an executive producer on the project, and executives from the network
told fans they shouldn't rule out seeing him appear on the show as well.
Writer Derek Kolstad will also be working on the show alongside Leitch and Stahelski,
lending added credibility to a project we're already excited about.
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