“The Continental,” the upcoming TV spinoff of Lionsgate’s “John Wick” franchise, will not be affected by the decision to greenlight a fourth film in the Keanu Reeves-led franchise.
“‘The Continental’ will be way earlier in the history of the series,” Starz COO Jeffrey Hirsch said during his executive session Friday at the Television Critics Association press tour. “It will be a fresh look at The Continental as the hotel and how that came into the being of John Wick. It’s way back in terms of the timing.”
Starz announced it was developing a TV series focused on the hotel that serves as a safehouse for assassins in development more than a year ago. Hirsch said added that with “John Wick: Chapter 4” slated for a 2021 release, “The Continental” is most likely not going to debut on TV until after that hits theaters.
As to whether Reeves — who is an executive producer on the series — will eventually appear as his popular assassin, Hirsch was mum. That’s a change from what Starz president of original programming Carmi Zlotnik said in January 2018, when he teased Reeves making at least a cameo appearance. “That’s a really good question and we’re not going to answer,” Hirsch said Friday.
“The Continental,” from writer and executive producer Chris Collins. Collins will serve as writer and showrunner on the series. Thunder Road Pictures’ Basil Iwanyk will executive produce alongside the movie’s directors Chad Stahelski and David Leitch, screenwriter Derek Kolstad and Reeves. Stahelski will direct the premiere episode.
“John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum,” the third film in the franchise, grossed more than $300 million at the global box office this summer.