“Ballerina” is nearly ready to take the stage.
The film from director Len Wiseman is the first feature-length spinoff “from the world of John Wick.” It stars Ana de Armas as a lethal assassin who is in over her head. Watch the new trailer, complete with a promised Keanu Reeves cameo and a trailer-worthy remix of Charli XCX’s “Von Dutch,” below.
If you’ll recall, the idea of the ballerina program was introduced in “John Wick: Chapter 3,” with Anjelica Huston running an organization of female killers (Huston returns for “Ballerina”). In fact, “Ballerina” takes place during the events of “John Wick: Chapter 3,” which is why Wick can return after dying at the end of 2023’s “John Wick: Chapter 4.” Also returning from the mainline series are Ian McShane and Lance Reddick, who passed away in 2023 at the age of 60. This will be his final posthumous on-screen appearance.
Joining the returning cast will be new-to-the-franchise stars Norman Reedus, Gabriel Byrne and Sharon Duncan-Brewster, all of whom seem very at-home in the heightened “John Wick” universe.
“Ballerina” is the latest chapter in the “John Wick” universe, which includes the four main films (all directed by Chad Stahelski) and the Peacock limited series “The Continental.” Additional projects in development include a new series called “Under the High Table;” a spinoff feature centered around Caine, the Donnie Yen character from “John Wick: Chapter 4;” a fifth mainline chapter; and a potential animated project that Stahelski first talked about in 2023. Obviously, should “Ballerina” become successful, that could open up an entire other series of films within the franchise.
In other words – the world of “John Wick” is ever-expanding.
“Ballerina” opens on June 6.
