After previously revealing a first look image of Keanu Reeves back in character as pop culture's most beloved hitman, Lionsgate has now unleashed the first sneak peek trailer for John Wick: Chapter 4. The trailer had a surprise unveiling at San Diego Comic-Con and has since been made available online for everyone to watch. With that said, you can check out the new trailer for yourself by watching the video below.
Per Collider, the unveiling came during Collider's Directors on Directing panel at SDCC. The publication's Steve Weintraub was on hand to speak with film directors including Chad Stahelski, who helmed all three prior John Wick films in addition to John Wick 4. Stahelski took advantage of the opportunity to treat fans with the surprise reveal of the trailer along with a first poster with Keanu Reeves in action.
Shay Hatten and Michael Finch penned the screenplay for John Wick 4. Along with Reeves in the lead, the sequel stars other franchise favorites like Laurence Fishburne as the Bowery King, Lance Reddick as Charon, and Ian McShane as Winston. Also starring are Rina Sawayama, Donnie Yen, Shamier Anderson, Bill Skarsgard, Hiroyuki Sanada, Scott Adkins, and Clancy Brown.
John Wick 4 Has Suffered Multiple Delays
Initially, the plan was for John Wick 4 and John Wick 5 to be filmed back-to-back. The pandemic wound up altering those plans and John Wick 4 was delayed and ultimately filmed on its own with plans to film the next installment at some point in the future. John Wick 4 was intended to be released back in 2021 before getting pushed back to 2022 and, ultimately, its final date in 2023.
Clearly, the franchise has become a huge success thanks in part to Keanu Reeves leading the series. If the original film had been made as originally scripted, however, the franchise likely wouldn't have the same longevity. Information about the original script was recently revealed by producer Basil Iwanyk in the new book They Shouldn't Have Killed His Dog: The Complete Uncensored Oral History of John Wick, Gun Fu, and the New Age of Action by Edward Gross and Mark A. Altman. Iwanyk says that John Wick was written as a 75-year-old man with Clint Eastwood eyed for the role.
"The lead was a 75-year-old man, twenty-five years after being retired," the producer said. "It was the fun of watching Clint Eastwood kick ass. I thought, 'Okay, there's probably one or two names you could do this with: Clint Eastwood, Harrison Ford.' Other than that, I'm not sure how I put this movie together. But the tone of the script for John Wick was subversive and really fun. It has a very clear emotional through line and a great premise for an action movie."
While casting was underway, Reeves got ahold of the script, and when he showed great interest, the decision was made to make the titular hitman much younger. Three movies in with a fourth coming next year, it's now impossible to imagine anyone else in the role.
John Wick: Chapter 4 will be released in movie theaters on March 24, 2023.
