John Wick 4 Star Laurence Fishburne Talks Bringing the Bravado of Bowery King (Exclusive)
Laurence Fishburne has played some iconic characters throughout his acting career, but there's just something special about The Bowery King. John Wick: Chapter 2 was the first time fans got to see Fishburne portray The Bowery King, and he has reprised the role two more times, including the upcoming John Wick: Chapter 4. The Bowery King has a certain flair and carries himself with an air of importance, and you can tell Fishburne enjoys these performances. The Emmy Award-winner stars alongside his longtime companion Keanu Reeves in John Wick: Chapter 4, and breaks down how Bowery King allows him to bring out his own bravado.
ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis spoke to Laurence Fishburne ahead of John Wick: Chapter 4's theatrical release, where he asked Fishburne about Bowery King and bravado. "It was pretty easy, man. It was on the page," Fishburne said. "That whole opening thing with the speech about, 'I was here before the beginning of time!' The way he gets to set the table, and it allows me to use my voice in a really beautiful way in the tunnel with all the reverberation. The way Chad [Stahelski] shot it, it was really mysterious and cool."
"I love this movie because it's so much fun," he continued. "Just playing The Bowery King, I get to have so much fun doing it.
John Wick: Chapter 4 Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes
John Wick: Chapter 4 is officially "Certified Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes, with over 132 reviews having been submitted (at the time of writing this). That makes John Wick 4 the top-rated film of the entire franchise as far as Rotten Tomatoes critics' scores go – the first of the franchise to even crack the 90% mark. John Wick (86%), John Wick: Chapter 2 (89%), and John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (89%) all came close, but never could muster the top-tier of critical love. Well, it looks like director Chad Stahelski, Keanu Reeves, and company are only getting better at this with time...
The Rotten Tomatoes critical consensus for John Wick 4 reads as follows: "John Wick: Chapter 4 piles on more of everything -- and suggests that when it comes to a well-dressed Keanu Reeves dispatching his enemies in lethally balletic style, there can never be too much."
Right now, John Wick: Chapter 4 is on pace to be the franchise's best opening weekend at the box office, with a potential $64 million haul projected. Now Chapter 4 has the best critical review aggregate score of any John Wick movie going into an opening weekend – all signs that the film could be a breakout hit to kick off the Spring Movie Season.
John Wick: Chapter 4 opens in theaters on March 24th.