Of course, John Wick: Chapter 4director of chad stahelski knows exactly when each movie in the franchise takes place, but the answers about that timeline can surprise even the most die-hard fans. In an exclusive interview with Collider’s steven weintraubStahelski spoke about the expansive timeline of the franchise, revealing that the events of the first three films actually happen in the span of less than two weeks.
Released in 2014 john wick tells the story of a retired assassin (Keanu Reeves) who kills again after being attacked by the son of a powerful mobster. Wick’s quest for revenge shakes up the status quo of the underground network of assassins he used to work for, leading to him being hunted by some dangerous people in 2017. John Wick: Chapter 2 and 2019 John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum.
Since the events of the three films are so deeply intertwined, we imagine that they happened in a short period. However, Stahelski says the timeline is more concise than fans might expect. In the director’s words, “It’s almost like a week and a half, time-wise.” and even if John Wick: Chapter 4 features the largest time jump in the franchise, the entire story is still told in less than a year. In the director’s words:
“Well, we thought the first three movies almost happened in a week, week and a half, somewhere. That’s my version, I think Keanu’s is a little different, and I think this is like six months later. So within a year, I think everything happens. I would say almost 7 to 8 months from now.”
During the interview, Stahelski also spoke about how some of the events in the film shaped the creative team’s approach to the subject of the timeline. So while they decided to never address the passage of time on screen, the injuries suffered by Wick affected the planning of the franchise’s timeline. Stahelski explains:
“I think it was in the second, we actually thought about it. [including an explicit time frame] between the two of us, but then we said, ‘Oh, that’s a bit silly, we’ll let people guess.’ Because we didn’t know how badly we were going to hurt him. You know, after number three, you’re like, ‘Okay. We can stretch him out a bit, but he fell off a building, so we thought, ‘Hey, a femur? Six months.'”
When is John Wick: Chapter 4 Are you coming to the theaters?
john wick 4 It is the first film in the franchise that is not written by Derek Kolstad, a decision that did not come from the writer. Stahelski, however, is back to direct the sequel after co-directing the first film with david leitch and taking complete control of the second and third installments. Stahelski directs from a script by army of the dead‘s shay hatten and american assassin‘s miguel pinzón. john wick 4 will also see the return of ian mcshaneis Winson and Lance Reddickis Charon. The film also stars the martial legend. donnie yen, anderson (Principle), bill skarsgard (He), Hiroyuki Sanada (Mortal Kombat), scott adkins (strange doctor), and brown clancy (Life imprisonment).
John Wick: Chapter 4 hits theaters on March 24, 2023. Check out the movie’s trailer and synopsis below, and look for more of our exclusive interview with Chad Stahelski soon.
John Wick (Keanu Reeves) discovers a way to defeat the High Table. But before he can win his freedom, Wick must face a new enemy with powerful alliances across the globe and forces that turn old friends into enemies.
