Who would not put their lives on the line for their pets, especially puppies? Seems like the former hitman, John Wick is no different that other pet owners, considering he got back into the business of taking lives, swiftly and smoothly, just because some gangsters killed his baby dog and took away his car.
Director Chad Stahelski and Screenplay writer Derek Kolstad have managed to create somewhat of a cult following for the John Wick franchise, starring Keanu Reeves as John Wick, a legendary assassin currently out of business.
The franchise premiered its first movie back in 2014 and has since then released three additional movies, titled John Wick: Chapters 1, 2, and 3, respectively, released in the years 2017, 2019, and 2023. Nobody really expected the movie to blow up and become this big, even so, it is currently somewhere at the top of the list of the world’s most successful movie franchises.
Initially meant to be a stand-alone, the international success of the first film brought about the script for the second movie and so the process continued. The fourth installment to the series, John Wick: Chapter 4, was released just this year and the makers already seem ready to put out more content related to the movie.
The Continental: A Spinoff
It is only right for the makers to milk all possible content from the franchise they have worked so hard to raise. Two of the most anticipated John Wick-related content, that fans cannot wait for, include ‘Ballerina,’ a movie based around Rooney, played by Ana De Armas, and ‘The Continental,’ a miniseries centering around the well-known, Continental Hotel and the assassins associated with it.
The much-awaited miniseries is set for release somewhere in September of 2023, as revealed by the producer of the show, Erica Lee. The show will have a total of three episodes with a running time as long as a full-blown movie i.e. at least ninety minutes.
We do not have the trailer for the show out yet, but it has been announced that the miniseries will be about the chain of hotels, The Continental, present all around the world acting as a buffer zone with no criminal activities taking place within its boundaries. It has become a sort of relaxing area for our assassins.
The show is set during the 1975 period in New York before it was the beautiful city that we know. The city has its nooks and crannies full of danger and threat and it is here where we will meet with our main lead, Winston, played by Ian McShane in the movies, set to lead the show.
Fans of the movies may recognize his character from the third John Wick movie where he played the evil guy. The show, The Continental, plans on exploring his character and his rise to getting control of the chain of hotels while dealing with gangsters on the streets of New York.
The series promises to explore the criminal world in more depth and from a wide variety of perspectives and plans on expanding the John Wick universe. Actor Colin Woodwell has confirmed his role in the series as the younger version of Winston. Though not much has been revealed regarding most of the cast, we do know that the series will also have Ayomide Adegun playing the role of the hotel’s chic concierge, Charon.
The series is based years before John Wick even came to be and plans on taking the fans of the franchise on an exclusive tour to get a look into the lives of gangsters and assassins and the luxury that is The Continental Hotel.
The Continental: More about the Show
It is Christmas for John Wick fans who got to see the fourth movie, John Wick: Chapter 4 in theatres in March, 2023 and will soon get a deeper and newer look into another aspect of the John Wick world. One that promises to level up to the John Wick movies standards.
Created by Greg Coolidge, Kirk Ward, and Shawn Simmons, people who have already been involved in the John Wick world, the makers have released a poster for the show, which has fans at the edge of their seats in anticipation of a teaser for the show.
The poster has a green-colored lift-button panel, with the button to the ninth floor lit up, maybe hinting towards a possible release date for the first episode of the show, though this is only a speculation and nothing has been confirmed by the producers. The poster also has the words ‘Prepare for Check-in’ written at the top which may be a clue for the soon-to-be-released teaser for the show.
The capital letter ‘C’ engraved on the panel is assumed to be the initial of the hotel’s name, The Continental. Producer Erica Lee has confirmed that the series will not fall short of the grandiosity and the larger-than-life theme that follows the John Wick universe. Each episode has been carefully curated and is at par with the movies, even in terms of the high budget.
We will get a look into not just Winston’s early life and his journey to the top but also the intricate and under-the-table workings of the hotel, The Continental. Each episode is as long as a movie ad has claimed to have a budget of twenty million dollars, for every episode. The episodes will definitely not be lacking in terms of visuals, which are going to be there at the John Wick level.
The series is also going to be made up of balanced levels of drama and action, once again matching the level of action in the movies. Erica Lee confirmed in an interview that the first two episodes of the series might have an overwhelming amount of action and that the third episode will be more focused on getting the story ahead.
The John Wick movies did not really take time to explore different aspects of the underworld workings, instead, they chose to get to the point of the story for each movie. It seems this miniseries will help fans of the franchise learn more about the New York Underworld and how it lead up to John Wick’s existence.
One thing that has always been a mystery to the fans is The Continental Hotel, which has been in the movies before, but not much has been revealed about its workings. Through this series, fans will get a deeper insight and answers to their questions like, ‘What does the cleaner look like?’, ‘What is the staff of the hotel like?’, ‘How does one even get access to the hotel and get inside?’, ‘How did the hotel chain end up becoming this symbol of peace for the blood-thirsty murderers?’.
The three-part story is all set to bring its fans and viewers an expanded universe full of possibilities for future John Wick movies or even a second season of the show itself. Makers of the show made the decision to pursue a prequel for the John Wick setting considering it the best for a series of such a scale.
The story of the show was initially developed around John Wick’s character and his life before he became a killer but it was thought best to leave the character alone to keep possibilities for his future unobstructed. The Continental, as a place was introduced in the movies and has since been a place of mystery with not much revealed about it, which is why it makes for the perfect premise for the show.
The show has been shot in Budapest, Hungary, though surely parts of it must have been shot in other places. Since the show is going to explore aspects of the criminal world in great depth, fans have been warned to remain alert and look for ‘easter eggs’ sprinkled all over the three episodes. This statement has raised the excitement levels higher as it most definitely raises questions about the future of the Wick world.
Avid fans of the show can watch the series on the Peacock Network channel along with Prime Videos where the episodes will be available for streaming somewhere during September 2023, when the show is expected to premiere.
