Is The John Wick Format Getting Stale?
Sometimes, a single film or franchise makes such a tremendous impact with such a simple concept that the rest of the medium can't help but play copycat. The action movie genre has always been a game of following the leader, but is it time for the most recent trend to start dying off?
In 2014, John Wick hit the big screen with a lethal cocktail of extremely efficient storytelling, perfect world-building, and fast-paced action. It was an instant hit, and it managed to take elements from a ton of other examples while feeling entirely unique. Since then, there have been a lot of works trying to recapture the magic with vastly different results.
John Wick Director Talks Potential for 5th Movie
Chad Stahelski and Derek Kolstad's original John Wick has since been followed by two sequels with a third on the way. A fifth is also in development with some questions hanging over the release date. The franchise will be even further bolstered by the addition of a spin-off called Ballerina starring Ana de Armas. A prequel TV series is also set to premiere on Peacock next year, depicting the earlier life of Winston before he attained his consecrated hotel. There have also been murmurings about a spin-off for Halle Berry's character Sofia, though that one seems less likely. That's a sprawling franchise to develop over just a decade, focused almost entirely on the single concept of Keanu Reeves seeking vengeance. Not to be reductive, but it's somewhat impressive that a concept that sounds perfect for a million 80s shoot-em-ups could spawn one of the most powerful action franchises ever. However, the official sequels and spin-offs barely cover the impact that the 2014 hit had on the genre.
Films that are «like John Wick, but...» are
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