‘John Wick Chapter 4’ – Behind the Scenes of That Donnie Yen Fight
Director Chad Stahelski recently spoke about the crazy looking Donnie Yen fight in the trailer, plus editing process and how long this chapter will be.
John Wick: Chapter 4 is in the editing process now. The movie is nearly at picture lock. VFX, music, and sound are up next. Director Chad Stahelski has confirmed that this will be the longest of the four movies – at least two hours fifteen based on the last three run times. The director also said not to expect a three-hour opus.
The sequel picks up after Wick joins forces with the Bowery King to take down the High Table. Beyond its rules, the organization of assassins has been kept in the shadows until this chapter – including its high-ranking members. The intricacies of the authority structure and who is running the organization will finally be revealed. Based on the posters, we’ll be getting a look into Wick’s personal history too.
via Lionsgate
In the first trailer, there’s a fight between Donnie Yen and Keanu Reeves that pushes the boundaries with swords, guns, fists, and feet. During a chat with Collider at SDCC, Stahelski spoke about it in particular. It will be different from anything we’ve seen in the Wick movies so far. All while Yen wears some killer shades.
A reminder…
The director spoke a bit about what the planning was like.
“So, it always comes down to, I can do the Donnie Yen triple kick. I can do all this, but you also want to do something different. So, you start sitting, you come at it from character, and you have a lot of discussions with the guys going, ‘Okay, Donnie is amazing at this. Keanu is amazing at this. They’re both great actors, so let’s lean onto that, and let’s do something we haven’t seen before.’ So now, that Donnie Yen with a sword and a pistol and Keanu with a samurai sword and a couple of pistols and throwing an AR-15 and a glass mirror room with Japanese artifacts. And yeah, throw in a couple of dogs, and let’s see what happens.”
Working with marital arts master and icon Yen was a dream for Stahelski, one he couldn’t believe was real at times. He recalled responding to Yen’s questions on set with nervous and excited giggling. Goes to show that even seasoned directors can be total fanboys.
Along with Stahelski, Keanu Reeves is back. Plus Lance Reddick, Rina Sawayama, Donnie Yen, Shamier Anderson, Bill Skarsgård, Hiroyuki Sanada, Scott Adkins, and Clancy Brown. Ian McShane is back as Winston, the manager of the Continental Hotel.
John Wick: Chapter 4 arrives in theaters on March 24th, 2023.
