Lionsgate’s next John Wick spinoff film is shaping up to be a singular vision from legendary martial arts action star Donnie Yen. As previously announced, Yen will reprise his role as Caine in this standalone film, but on Tuesday the studio announced that he will also direct. Production will begin later this year according to a report by Deadline, with a new script by Mattson Tomlin, wroter of the upcoming sequel to The Batman. While this is an English-language film, Lionsgate is billing it as a Hong Kong-style martial arts movie, which makes sense based on what we’ve seen from Caine so far.
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The Caine spinoff does not have a title or logline yet, but it will reportedly pick up the character’s story from where it left off in John Wick: Chapter 4. There, Caine is introduced as a retired assassin and an old friend of John Wick. Although he is blind, he is still one of the most formidable killers in this world, and he is coerced into attacking John Wick through threats against his daughter.
“Hong Kong action movie” is often evocative enough for marketing purposes, but tying the movie to Yen and his style is a step up even from there. The 61-year-old is a pioneer in the Hong Kong film industry, and in bridging the gap between Hong Kong and Hollywood for his generation. He is best known for playing the titular character in the Ip Man franchise, while in the U.S. he has appeared in Rogue One, the live-action Mulan, and XXX: Return of Xander Cage, among many other movies.
“The John Wick films have set an immensely high standard for action filmmaking and I greatly appreciate Lionsgate giving me the opportunity to further elevate the franchise,” Yen said on Tuesday. “I am both thrilled and deeply inspired to make this happen.”
Meanwhile, Tomlin is taking over writing duties after a previous draft of the movie was written by Robert Askins. Tomlin was an uncredited co-writer on The Batman, and is now co-writing the sequel with Matt Reeves. He is also writing the adaptation of Keanu Reeves’ comic book BRZRKR, and the Game of Thrones spinoff Aegon’s Conquest.
The story for Caine’s movie is a mystery, especially now that we know John Wick: Chapter 5 is moving forward with Reeves returning to the starring role. The franchise is also expanding with an animated prequel, and Ballerina premiering this summer on June 6th.
