John Wick Producer Reveals What Sets Ballerina Apart From Franchise

When a franchise gets a spinoff, it can often feel like merely a continuation of the core storyline, but John Wick producer Erica Lee recently detailed that there are a number of ways in which the upcoming Ana de Armas-starring Ballerina spinoff will set itself apart from the Keanu Reeves-starring series. Lee confirmed that not only will the narrative trajectory of Armas’ character be diametrically opposed to Reeves’ Wick, but that the project will also feature some major aesthetic differences from what audiences saw in the four John Wick films. Ballerina doesn’t currently have a release date.

“What’s cool about Ballerina is it’s a different setting. So it’s, aesthetically, slightly different than the Wick movies,” Lee shared with /Film. “Ana de Armas is an incredible actress and she’s amazing. I think what’s different about her in Ballerina is that Wick in John Wick is always trying to get out, and the character that Ana plays in Ballerina is trying to get in. So what does that mean for the character? What does that mean for the High Table, the world, the Continentals, all of that? And I think that, obviously, there’s going to be killer action and use of interesting weapons and amazing cinematography and cool sets. It’s a European location, so we’re always trying to push the envelope. Then of course, we have cameos and appearances from some of our friends from Wick world, so some continuity.”

Lee also pointed out how, while other franchises will develop spinoffs when a main property is coming to an end or a character proves to be a breakout hit and filmmakers want to mine that potential, Ballerina has been in the works for years and only actually moved forward once all the best pieces were in place.

“We had some time to work on it. It was not something we rushed,” the filmmaker confirmed. “I actually read it five years ago for the first time, and then we spent a lot of time developing it and finessing it once John Wick 3 had shot, and then John Wick 4, and how does that world inform the timeline and how does it all work? So we’re trying to be really thoughtful about it.”

Stay tuned for details on Ballerina. John Wick: Chapter 4 is in theaters now.

Are you looking forward to the spinoff? Let us know in the comments!