Ballerina

[GeneChing]

'John Wick' Spinoff 'Ballerina' Lands 'Underworld' Director
OCTOBER 08, 2019 10:24AM by Aaron Couch


| Courtesy of Lionsgate

Len Wiseman will helm the film, which centers on a female assassin.

The next piece of a John Wick universe is falling into place. Filmmaker Len Wiseman is coming on board to direct Ballerina, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. Plot details are being kept in a safe in the Continental Hotel, but the film centers a female assassin.

The script comes from Shay Hatten, who sold the pitch to Lionsgate in 2017 at the age of 23. He penned the story on nights and weekends while working as an assistant at Robert Downey Jr.'s Team Downey, and since then has gone on to earn writing credits on Zack Snyder's upcoming Netflix zombie movie Army of the Dead and last year's John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum, the latest entry in the Keanu Reeves franchise that also happened to introduce a ballet academy to the universe.

Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee and John Wick filmmaker Chad Stahelski will produce Ballerina. Reeves will executive produce, with James Myers overseeing for Lionsgate. The latest John Wick film earned $323 million globally and the studio is currently working on a fourth installment, due out in 2021.

Wiseman, who is known for the Underworld franchise and helming Live Free or Die Hard, is repped by CAA, Hatten by Lee Stobby Entertainment.

The Hollywood Reporter
AARON COUCH
aaron.couch@thr.com
@AaronCouch

THE WICK THREADS
John Wick
John Wick 2
John Wick 3
The Continental
John Wick 4

For continuity's sake, I'm going to copy this new Ballerina thread to The Continental

[Jimbo]

It’s quite obvious that the people involved with the John Wick franchise were impressed by The Villainess (2017).

[GeneChing]

Ana de Armas officially starring in John Wick spin-off Ballerina
By Emily Garbutt published 2 days ago

The spin-off is officially on the way


(Image credit: Universal)
John Wick spin-off Ballerina is officially going ahead with Ana de Armas in the lead role, it was revealed at CinemaCon.

The movie is about a young female assassin who seeks revenge against the people who killed her family. No other casting details have been revealed yet.

Len Wiseman, who helmed 2012's Total Recall, is directing, while Army of the Dead screenwriter Shay Hatten has written the script. Hatten also wrote John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, the movie in which the character central to Ballerina first appeared. Franchise director Chad Stahelski is on board as a producer.

Elsewhere in the Wick-verse, John Wick 4 sees Keanu Reeves return as the assassin, alongside Ian McShane, Laurence Fishburne, Lance Reddick, and Rina Sawayama. There's also a prequel TV show in the works – The Continental will center around the origins of the titular hotel where assassins from around the world come to meet, with Colin Woodell playing a younger version of McShane's character Winston Scott.

As for de Armas, she's starred in blockbusters No Time to Die and Knives Out and the Hulu thriller Deep Water opposite Ben Affleck. She'll also play Marilyn Monroe in the upcoming Netflix biopic Blonde, and she's set to star in another Netflix movie, The Gray Man, alongside Chris Evans and Ryan Gosling.

John Wick: Chapter 4 arrives on the big screen on March 24, 2023. While we wait, check out our list of the other upcoming movie release dates that we think should be on your radar.


Emily Garbutt
I’m an Entertainment Writer at GamesRadar+, covering everything film and TV-related across the Total Film and SFX sections – I help bring you all the latest news and the occasional feature, too. I’ve previously written for publications like HuffPost and i-D after getting my NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism.

It’s quite obvious that the people involved with the John Wick franchise were impressed by The Villainess (2017).

I too was impressed by The Villainess. You only gave it 3.5/5

[GeneChing]

Keanu Reeves Returns as John Wick in 'Ballerina' Spinoff [Exclusive]
BY
MAGGIE LOVITT
PUBLISHED 41 MINUTES AGO
The 'John Wick' star is currently in Prague, where filming has begun for the spinoff film.

Collider can exclusively reveal that Keanu Reeves is currently in Prague and set to reprise his role as John Wick in the John Wick spinoff film starring Ana de Armas. This exciting report comes on the heels of the announcement that the Ballerina film will also see Ian McShane return to the franchise as Winston, the manager of The Continental Hotel. It is not yet clear if Reeves' reprisal will be a cameo, or if he will have a larger part in the overarching plot of Ballerina.
Since the first John Wick film landed in theaters in 2014, the Chad Stahelski-helmed franchise has grown exponentially, with three additional films—including the highly anticipated John Wick 4—as well as two spinoff projects. Ballerina is currently filming in Prague, with Len Wiseman (Underworld, Live Free or Die Hard) directing the screenplay by Shay Hatten. Also on the horizon is the John Wick prequel series, The Continental, which will focus on the titular hotel and the early years of Winston's life. With the franchise continuing to expand and beginning to explore prequel stories, it has left fans to speculate about where Ballerina will fit within the timeline. Currently, it is unknown if the film will take prior to the events of John Wick or if it might fit in closer to the upcoming fourth installment. Stahelski might not be directing Ballerina, but he has returned to the project alongside Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee.
News of Reeves' return to the John Wick universe comes a few weeks after reports that the legendary actor had exited the Devil in the White City project at Hulu. He is also gearing up for the Netflix adaptation of his comic book BRZRKR, which he may direct, according to a conversation he had with Collider.
While major plot details about Ballerina remain a mystery, it is exciting to see that de Armas will be sharing the screen with two John Wick heavyweights like McShane and Reeves. Filming is currently underway in Prague, and no release date has been set for the movie.

What We Know About John Wick 4

Reeves will reunite with his former Matrix co-star Laurence Fishburne in this next outing as Wick. In addition to McShane, the film will see the return of Charon (Lance Reddick), who join the impressive cast list of Donnie Yen, Shamier Anderson, Bill Skarsgård, Rina Sawayama, Hiroyuki Sanada, Scott Adkins, and Clancy Brown. John Wick 4's official synopsis doesn't give a lot away about where Wick will be when he returns, but it certainly ups the stakes:
"John Wick takes on his most lethal adversaries yet in the upcoming fourth installment of the series. With the price on his head ever increasing, Wick takes his fight against the High Table global as he seeks out the most powerful players in the underworld, from New York to Paris to Osaka to Berlin."
John Wick 4 arrives in theaters on March 24, 2023. Check out the trailer we debuted for the film at SDCC below:


Maggie Lovitt is the Lead News Editor at Collider and a lover of all things related to pop culture. In addition to reporting on the latest entertainment news, she is also an actor and member of the Screen Actors Guild based out of the Mid-Atlantic Region. She is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, a member of the Hollywood Critics Association, Screen Actors Guild, and The Cherry Picks. She has a special taste for horror films that make you think, rom-coms that dole out a healthy dose of Fremdschämen, high-flying action flicks that deliver hits, and has an enemies-to-lovers relationship with superhero movies. In 2020, she co-founded the podcast “Petticoats & Poppies: History Girls at the Movies” with her longtime friend, and North Carolina-based film critic, Nicole Ackman. That same year, Maggie joined as a co-host on the Star Wars podcast ‘Outer Rim Beacon,’ and has appeared as a guest on numerous Star Wars podcasts and other pop culture podcasts. In 2021, she launched “Starbucks Lovers: A Taylor Swift Podcast” which allows her to geek out about her love for Taylor Swift and music. She also runs Millennial Falcon Reviews (@mfalconreviews). While she spends her time writing and editing articles about the entertainment industry, Maggie’s background is in history and anthropology. She earned her Bachelor’s in Historic Preservation from the University of Mary Washington, where she focused on Colonial American history, British literature, and historic architecture. She recently earned her Master’s in Engaged Anthropology at the University of Wales, Trinity Saint David, where she focused her studies on dark tourism, magic, and the politics of food.

I'm thinking he's back...

[GeneChing]

Anjelica Huston Joins Ana de Armas in Lionsgate’s ‘John Wick’ Spinoff ‘Ballerina’ (Exclusive)
Len Wiseman is directing the action feature that is currently shooting in Prague.

BY BORYS KIT

NOVEMBER 21, 2022 1:23PM

Anjelica Huston COURTESY OF LIONSGATE

Anjelica Huston has pirouetted back into the world of John Wick, joining the cast of Ballerina, Lionsgate’s spinoff set in the world of the Keanu Reeves action franchise.

Production is already underway on the feature that is being toplined by Ana de Armas and directed by Len Wiseman.

Shay Hatten wrote the script and the plot involves a young woman (de Armas) with killer skills who uses said skills to get revenge when her family is killed by hitmen.

Huston is reprising her role as The Director, the head of the Ruska Roma crime organization. She appeared in John Wick 3 – Parabellum in a chewy scene with lines such as “You honor me by bringing death to my front door?” as beleaguered hitman Wick came to her for help. Among her skills is training young dancers to learn that art is suffering while also training young fighters to roll with the flips.

Huston isn’t the only Wick vet back on the call sheet. Ian McShane is reprising his role as Winston, manager of the Continental, the fan-favorite hotel for assassins with its own set of rules and severe consequences for breaking them.

“The idea of Ballerina was formed around the scenes with Anjelica in John Wick 3,” said Erica Lee, who is producing the project along with Basil Iwanyk and Chad Stahelski. “Anjelica Huston is an icon and is nothing less than Hollywood royalty. The world of Wick is always made richer by her commanding screen presence.”

Huston, whose mother was a ballerina (her father was director John Huston), has spent the last several years focused on voice work, acting as the narrator for Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch and working on shows such as American Dad and BoJack Horseman. She did star opposite Stranger Things’ Noah Schnapp in 2020’s World War II drama, Waiting for Anya.

She'll fit right into the WickVerse...

[GeneChing]

For some reason, I thought he was already involved...

Lance Reddick Joins Lionsgate’s ‘John Wick’ Spinoff ‘Ballerina’
Len Wiseman is directing the action feature shooting in Prague, where Reddick will reprise his role as Charon.

BY ETAN VLESSING

DECEMBER 2, 2022 9:25AM

Lance Reddick RICH POLK/GETTY IMAGES

Lance Reddick has signed on to star in Ballerina, the new film set in the John Wick universe.

Reddick will reprise his role as Charon, a concierge at the Continental, the fan-favorite hotel for assassins with its own set of rules and severe consequences for breaking them. Production is already underway on the feature that is being toplined by Ana de Armas and directed by Len Wiseman.

Shay Hatten wrote the script and the plot involves a young woman (de Armas) with killer skills who uses said skills to get revenge when her family is killed by hitmen. Angelica Huston and Ian McShane are also joining Reddick as John Wick veterans back on the call sheet for Ballerina.

The producer credits are shared by Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee and Chad Stahelski. Brady Fujikawa and Chelsea Kujawa are overseeing the project for Lionsgate.

“Charon is an indispensable part of the world of Wick. It’s great to know that Lance will continue to make his mark on this franchise,” Lee said in a statement. Reddick recently appeared in the seventh and final season of Bosch and in Netflix’s Resident Evil series.

He also voiced a role for Netflix’s animated Farzar. Reddick’s upcoming roles include the Shirley Chisholm biopic Shirley, starring opposite Regina King and for writer-director John Ridley, and White Men Can’t Jump.

He is represented by CAA and Grandview.

[GeneChing]

Catalina Sandino Moreno Joins Ana de Armas in Lionsgate’s ‘John Wick’ Spinoff ‘Ballerina’
Production is underway with Len Wiseman in the director’s chair.

BY ETAN VLESSING

DECEMBER 7, 2022 1:19PM

Catalina Sandino Moreno TROY JENSEN


Catalina Sandino Moreno has boarded Ballerina, Lionsgate’s John Wick spinoff that will see her appear opposite Ana de Armas.

An Oscar nominee for her debut performance in Maria Full of Grace, Moreno will next be seen as the female lead in John Woo’s feature Silent Night. She also recently starred in the indie Barbarians, opposite Iwan Rheon and Tom Cullen, and currently stars in the Epix horror series From, which is shooting its second season.

Production on Ballerina is now underway, with Len Wiseman in the director’s chair, and Shay Hatten having written the screenplay. The action pic is set in the universe of the John Wick franchise movies that star Keanu Reeves.

Plot details involve a young woman with killer skills who uses said skills to get revenge when her family is killed by hitmen. The producers are Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee and Chad Stahelski. Brady Fujikawa and Chelsea Kujawa are overseeing the project for Lionsgate.

“One of the challenges of casting Ballerina is making sure that the new roles are played by actors with as much power, emotional presence and physical skill as Ana has,” producer Lee said in a statement. “After working with Catalina on John Woo’s Silent Night, it was clear that she belonged at the top of our list, and it’s a thrill to be reuniting with her.”

Moreno is represented by Lasher Group, UTA and Felker Toczek Suddleson Abramson.

Hmmm, I can't remember Silent Night. Did I see that?

[GeneChing]

Apr 4, 2023 9:32am PT
‘John Wick’ Spinoff ‘Ballerina,’ Starring Ana de Armas, Sets Release Date

By William Earl

Marc Hom for Variety

As “John Wick: Chapter 4” crosses $250 million at the worldwide box office, the eagerly-awaited spinoff “Ballerina” has received a June 7, 2024, release date from Lionsgate.

The action film stars Ana de Armas, Anjelica Huston, Gabriel Byrne, the late Lance Reddick, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Norman Reedus, Ian McShane and John Wick himself, Keanu Reeves.

“Ballerina” is directed by Len Wiseman, written by Shay Hatten and produced by Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee and Chad Stahelski, who directed all four “John Wick” movies.

The official synopsis of the film is brief, but teases that “The world of ‘John Wick’ expands with ‘Ballerina,’ as Ana de Armas stars as an assassin trained in the traditions of the Ruska Roma.”

‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Begins International Box Office Campaign With $33 Million, but ‘John Wick 4’ Stays on Top
“John Wick: Chapter 4” went over the $250 million worldwide mark on April 3, proving a commercial hit that could rival “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” as the highest-grossing entry in the action series.

Furthermore, “Chapter 4” is a critical hit, scoring 95% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. In Variety‘s review, Owen Gleiberman wrote that “The movie is conceived as a knowingly overstuffed gift to ‘John Wick’ fans, and on that level it succeeds.”

In January, de Armas spoke about filming “Ballerina” on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.”

“We’ve been in Prague filming for four months,” she said. “We still have one more month to go. And I’m in pain. You know, my body, my back, everything hurts. I’m complaining, I’m sore, I’m bruised.”

“Keanu and I were rehearsing our very difficult stunt scene, and this man is just rolling and throwing me and doing these crazy stunts,” she continued. “And I’m like, ‘I can’t complain anymore.’ Because he is doing it. He truly is the best.”

Watch her interview discussing the film below:

Now a big act to follow...

[GeneChing]

Just kidding. I'll split this into its own indie thread as soon as someone comments.

[GeneChing]

Review Netflix movie review: Ballerina – Korean actress Jeon Jong-seo reunites with The Call director to play an assassin in slick and gory thriller
A slickly executed Korean thriller from The Call director Lee Chung-hyun, Ballerina stars Jeon Jong-seo as an assassin avenging the death of her old friend
While the script offers precious little invention beneath its polished surface, Jeon’s cold-as-ice angel of vengeance is the film’s saving grace
James Marsh

Published: 1:30pm, 5 Oct, 2023


A female assassin sets out to avenge her best friend’s death the only way she knows how in The Call director Lee Chung-hyun’s slickly executed thriller.
Reuniting with leading lady Jeon Jong-seo ( Burning), Ballerina is a lean and unflinching exercise in neon and blood-drenched action that should sate fans of such movies, despite lacking the genre-bending originality of Lee’s attention-grabbing debut.
In years to come, Ballerina may find itself vying for attention alongside Len Wiseman’s coming John Wick spin-off of the same name, slated to star Ana de Armas in a similar role and hit cinemas screens in the summer of 2024.
For the time being, Lee’s film already owes a huge debt to forerunners in this super-stylised space, most notably Luc Besson’s Nikita, Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy, and Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive.
Jeon stars as Ok-ju, a laconic loner who has parted ways with the shadowy international organisation that trained her to be a remorseless killing machine. Her quiet, solitary existence is disrupted when, out of the blue, she receives a call from Min-hee (Park Yu-rim), a ballerina with whom she was once very close.


Park Yu-rim (front) in a still from “Ballerina”. Photo: Yoo Eun Mi/Netflix
On arrival at her flat, Ok-ju discovers Min-hee has taken her own life, leaving behind only a cryptic message asking her friend to avenge her. Ok-ju is directed to a drug dealer known as Chef Choi (Kim Ji-hoon), and from there descends into a maelstrom of organised crime, perverse exploitation and bloody violence.

There is no denying that Ballerina feels like Lee is pirouetting in the wrong direction after his endlessly inventive time-travel horror mash-up The Call.

Too many of the film’s tropes, from the handsome, wealthy, emotionally detached villain onwards, have long since become tired, overused clichés; it can be frustrating to see them employed so enthusiastically in a script that offers precious little invention beneath its shimmering surface.


Kim Ji-hoon in a still from “Ballerina”. Photo: Yoo Eun Mi/Netflix
Jeon’s cold-as-ice angel of vengeance is the film’s saving grace. Ok-ju’s nonplussed half-pout of unfazed disinterest sits brilliantly at odds with the extreme violence she doles out to an endless parade of knife-wielding goons. Her ability to garner so much empathy while emoting so little is a testament to Jeon’s bewitching screen presence.

Had Lee dared to explore the depths of her relationship with Min-hee further, rather than merely imply that, for Ok-ju at least, it was more than just platonic, the film might have been a genuine game-changer. As is, Ballerina is a polished yet disposable slice of ho-hum hokum.

Ballerina will start streaming on Netflix on October 6.

I was kinda hoping someone would call me out for posting Ballerina-Netflix on the John Wick Ballerina thread, then I was going to split them, but as this premieres tomorrow, I'll just split these now.