During New York Comic Con last week, Lionsgate unveiled the first trailer for their highly-anticipated action sequel John Wick: Chapter 2, which was received quite well by fans. Today we have three new photos, which offer a closer look at new characters played by Laurence Fishburne, Ruby Rose and Riccardo Scarmarcio. We also have a glimpse at the title character himself, played by Keanu Reeves, who is seen searching for one of his unseen enemies in a nightclub.
Keanu Reeves revealed in March that Laurence Fishburne is playing a character in the "underworld" known as The Bowery King, who is seen in the trailer telling John Wick that he isn't very good at retiring, since he has been dragged back into action once again. Oddly enough, the film's IMDB page lists this character as The Bowler King, so we aren't quite sure which of these names is accurate, but, regardless of his name, we get to see this character with one of his many birds in this new photo. We still don't know how this mysterious character fits into the story, but it marks a reunion for Laurence Fishburne, Keanu Reeves and director Chad Stahelski, who all worked together on The Matrix trilogy.
Keanu Reeves returns in the sequel to the 2014 hit as legendary hitman John Wick who is forced to back out of retirement by a former associate plotting to seize control of a shadowy international assassins' guild. Bound by a blood oath to help him, John travels to Rome where he squares off against some of the world's deadliest killers. Ruby Rose is listed as a character named Ares, although no details have been given regarding her role, while Riccardo Scarmarcio is playing the primary villain. The sequel will also delve deeper into the assassin's world of the Continental hotel, with John Wick getting a contract put on his head after he killed a Russian gangster.
The cast also includes returning John Wick stars Ian McShane as Winston, Lance Reddick as Charon, Bridget Moynahan as John's late wife Helen and Thomas Sadoski as Jimmy. New cast members Common, and Peter Stormare, with Lionsgate setting a February 10, 2017 release date. The action sequel will be going up against Universal's Fifty Shades Darker and The LEGO Batman Movie in what is shaping up to be quite the competitive month, which will also see Rings (February 3), The Dark Tower (February 17), The Great Wall (February 17) and Fist Fight (February 17) hit theaters.
Chad Stahelski, who is directing John Wick 2 by himself after working with David Leitch on the original action-thriller, is directing from a script by original John Wick writer Derek Kolstad. The original movie took in $43 million domestically and $86 million worldwide from a $20 million budget, becoming a cult favorite on home video shortly after its release. Take a look at the latest photos from John Wick: Chapter 2 to get ready for its release this coming February.
