Our favorite hitman returns with a new dog and a new nemesis.
The surprise success of John Wick wasn’t lost on the cast and crew of the film. At Saturday’s New York Comic-Con panel for its highly-anticipated sequel, John Wick: Chapter 2, star Keanu Reeves gracious thanked the cheering crowd for their support, relaying that there wouldn’t have been a sequel without them. And John Wick is back and slated for release on February 10, 2017 as evident by the first trailer introducing a new location (Rome), a new nemesis in Ruby Rose (and maybe Common?), a new dog, and guns – lots and lots of guns.
Check out the trailer below, and then keep reading to see what else we saw and heard about the upcoming sequel.
Lionsgate’s John Wick 2 panel was preceded by a sizzle reel, which came with a warning that read: “The panel for John Wick: Chapter 2 that you are about to witness will contain foul language, as well as kick-ass film footage that shows fighting, violence, and lots and lots of guns. Enjoy!” And the filmmakers did not disappoint as the sizzle gave a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the sequel including new locations, slick muscle cars, and Reeves in action, shooting and physically taking down a slew of bad guys. As co-star Ian McShane succinctly put it, it was “More of the same. More and better.”
The panel, which included returning cast members Reeves and McShane, as well as new addition, Common, and director Chad Stahelski, producer Basil Iwanyk and screenwriter Derek Kolstad, were careful not to reveal too much but we got a little more insight into what we can expect from the film, aside from guns and fast cars. Reeves confirmed that while this would be a sequel and not a prequel, we would get a little more insight into John Wick himself, including how he got involved with his former life.
Kolstad specifically spoke to how John Wick was able to retire, explaining that to do so he had to take a “blood oath.” Now that Wick has popped back up and is active again, the (unnamed) person who swore this oath with him will emerge to collect that debt. It’s unclear if this will be Ruby Rose or Common, although both seem to be at odds with Wick. While Common didn’t reveal much about his character, he did mention he and Wick have a “disagreement” and judging by a brief scene in the trailer, in which both characters rapidly draw guns on one another, it’s likely a disagreement that won’t end well.
Of course, the teaser trailer’s biggest reveal, of course, was the addition of Laurence Fishburne, which caused the crowd to erupt in cheers and applause at the Matrix reunion. The panel didn’t reveal much about Fishburne’s character, nicknamed The Bowler King, but Reeves and Stahelski did confirm that the role was written specifically for Fishburne and that the character was someone that John Wick could rely on.
And what about that new dog we meet at the end of the first film? While the pup makes an appearance in the trailer, as well quite a few images on IMDB, Iwanyk was cagey about the canine’s ultimate fate. While he and McShane joked about killing “eighty Italians” in the film, he would only tell fans that what happens to the dog is “great.” For the sake of John Wick and the entire population of New York City, we can only hope so.
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