Lionsgate had gone all-in with the “John Wick” by hiring director Chad Stahelski (“John Wick 4”) in a much larger creative role as franchise overseer as spinoffs are on the horizon with Ana de Armas‘ “Ballerina” and one expanding the role of Donnie Yen‘s blind bad-ass assassin, “Caine.” We’ve got a big update from the studio on the latter as part of their big presentation at CinemaCon in Las Vegas.
“Caine” is expected to shoot in Hong Kong later this year and Lionsgate has announced that Yen will take on directing duties with a script penned by Mattson Tomlin (“The Batman Part II”), who previously wrote on the two “Batman” films from Matt Reeves and recently worked with Netflix on the animated series, “Terminator Zero.” Tomlin is also writing on the Keanu Reeves-led immortal actioner “BRZRKR” at Netflix that recently landed filmmaker Justin Lin (“Star Trey Beyond”).
READ MORE: ‘BRZRKR’: Justin Lin To Direct Keanu Reeves In Immortal Action Flick At Netflix
Most recently, Yen directed himself in films such as “The Prosecutor,” and “Sakra,” so this news about him helming the spinoff isn’t shocking.
A previous draft of the screenplay of the new film was written by Robert Askins before Tomlin got involved with the project.
“The ‘John Wick’ films have set an immensely high standard for action filmmaking and I greatly appreciate Lionsgate giving me the opportunity to further elevate the franchise,” said Yen in an official statement. “I am both thrilled and deeply inspired to make this happen.”
Stahelski added, “One of my favorite characters in the ‘John Wick’ world is Caine. To have the chance to dive into his world and discover all his adventures excites us all. We envision a modern day kung-fu classic that explores the ‘John Wick’ world, and who better to helm it than Donnie Yen himself. His understanding of the culture, the world, and, of course, the action, make him the perfect director for this project.”
They’re keeping the plot details of the pic under lock and key, but it is expected to follow Caine after his obligations to The High Table ended in “John Wick 4,” and Akira (played by singer Rina Sawayama) is now seeking revenge for the death of her father in Osaka, Japan, at the hands of Caine. We’re still waiting on confirmation that Sawayama is reprising the Akira role.
The film’s producing team features longtime franchise producers Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee of Thunder Road, Stahelski via 87Eleven Entertainment, and Yen.
Our next adventure in the world of “John Wick” and The High Table will be “Ballerina,” which is heading to the big screen on June 6.
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
- Christopher Marc
