The Big Picture
- The team behind the John Wick franchise is hesitant about creating further installments, focusing on making sure each project is successful rather than planning sequels.
- The creative team behind the John Wick franchise never wants to jinx a project by getting cocky about a sequel, in addition to practical concerns about the ongoing writers’ strike.
- Despite their reservations, the executive producers of The Continental are open to a second season and believe there is still more story to tell in the John Wick universe.
No matter how many movies Lionsgate unloads, fans just can’t seem to get enough of John Wick. An immediate success, audiences couldn’t help but fall in love with the retired hitman who snaps back into action following the murder of his dog. Just as likable as the titular hitman who he portrays, Keanu Reeves’ involvement in the franchise has continued to keep fans coming back for more. The productions have been so successful that they’ve given way to both a film spin-off, the upcoming Ana de Armas-led feature Ballerina, and the highly-anticipated prequel series, The Continental. While the John Wick films keep churning out more stories from the gun-fu universe, many of us are wondering if the same will be said for the four-episode show. In an interview with Collider’s Christina Radish, The Continental and John Wick franchise executive producers, Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee shed light on the answer.
According to Iwanyk, the team behind John Wick has never set out to do further installments with the executive producer saying, “The one common emotion of all the John Wick movies, when we’re shooting them, and with the John Wick TV show, is that we never talk about sequels. We’re so terrified and desperate to make sure the stuff we’re doing works.” A crazy notion when you consider how many films the franchise has been able to produce, the team behind The Continental is still concerned that the show won’t hit the same with viewers.
“We don’t wanna tempt the movie and television Gods and have them say, ‘Oh, you’re getting cocky and talking about a sequel? Well, f— you!’ I don’t wanna anger them. I wanna be humble in front of them,” Iwanyk says, adding that another “reason for that is for practical purposes because we don’t know what we’re doing and there’s a writers’ strike.”
A Look at What Could Be Next
Still, Lee holds onto hope that a follow-up season could take shape from the premiere of The Continental. “Those conversations are just starting now,” she says, adding that specifics, such as a “time jump” haven’t been completely ironed out. But, when it comes to the John Wick universe, Lee says “there’s definitely more story to tell,” and that the team behind the prequel series are “hopeful for a second season.”
On September 22, Peacock is inviting audiences to check into The Continental when the prequel series centered around the titular hotel’s future owner, Winston Scott (Colin Woodell) kicks off with the first episode of a three-part mini-series. Check out a trailer for the show below.