Everyone’s favorite assassin is back in the first official promo poster for John Wick: Chapter 4. Spotted at the CinemaCon 2022 event (via Bleedingcool.com) that is currently taking place in Las Vegas, the poster shows Keanu Reeves looking typically determined to take out as many enemies as possible in the name of our entertainment as he points his handgun at an off-screen bad guy — another bad guy foolish enough to mess with Wick.
While the image is broken up a little by the frames of several lightboxes, this promo is our first official look at Keanu Reeves’ return to the iconic action hero role of John Wick. The poster, of course, gives very little away, but it does show off a John Wick who looks rather ragged and distressed, suggesting that John Wick: Chapter 4 will continue to send the hitman into increasingly difficult survival situations.
The poster also reveals a neon red and green color scheme, with Wick flanked on either side with cherry blossoms; both elements could suggest that John Wick: Chapter 4 will see the beloved assassin travel to Japan. This idea is strengthened by recent rumors that John Wick: Chapter 4 will, in fact, be titled John Wick: Chapter 4 – Hagakure, a subtitle that is notably absent from this promo poster.
Hagakure is a Practical & Spiritual Warrior's Guide
Hagakure means ‘Hidden by the Leaves’ and is a practical and spiritual guide for a warrior. So, very fitting for John Wick: Chapter 4. The guide was largely forgotten for two centuries after its composition, but it has since attained high status and was viewed as the definitive guide of the samurai during the Pacific War. John Wick: Chapter 4 has been hotly rumored to be following in the footstep of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, adding a subtitle that relates to the movie’s plot, but so far this has been unconfirmed officially.
Hardly anything has been revealed about the plot of John Wick: Chapter 4, but the last audiences saw of the put-upon hitman he was being left to fend for himself, having been declared excommunicado following the violent events of 2017's John Wick: Chapter 2. Now with a hefty bounty put upon his head, John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum sees Wick set out to seek help to save himself from ruthless assassins and bounty hunters. The movie ends with Wick being shot by his friend Winston before falling from the roof of The Continental. In the final scene, Wick teams up with Laurence Fishburne’s Bowery King, with the pair hellbent on taking the fight directly to the High Table.
Directed by Chad Stahelski, John Wick: Chapter 4 sees Keanu Reeves reprise the title role alongside Laurence Fishburne as The Bowery King, Ian McShane as Winston, the manager of the Continental Hotel, and Lance Reddick as Charon, the concierge at the Continental. The action sequel will introduce the likes of Donnie Yen, Shamier Anderson, Rina Sawayama, Bill Skarsgård, Hiroyuki Sanada, Scott Adkins, and Clancy Brown to the fray.
Distributed by Lionsgate, John Wick: Chapter 4 is set to be theatrically released in the United States on March 24, 2023.