“John Wick: Chapter 4” has essentially wrapped up its theatrical run ahead of a digital release on May 23rd and disc release on June 13th.
That doesn’t mark the end of the “John Wick” universe, with both the “Ballerina” film starring Ana de Armas coming next year and a three-part prequel TV event series in the form of “The Continental” launching in September.
The series will be set in the 1970s and focuses on the origins of Ian McShane’s Winston and Lance Reddick’s Charon, his right-hand man, who take over as manager and concierge of the hotel, respectively.
Basil Iwanyk, the producer across the whole franchise, recently spoke with Deadline about “The Continental” and explained they plan to adopt the cinematic language of 1970s New York as well, specifically citing the great Sidney Lumet who delivered some of the most iconic works of the period like “Serpico,” “Dog Day Afternoon,” and “Network”.
Albert Hughes (“The Book Of Eli,” “From Hell”) directed the first and third of the episodes, with Charlotte Brandstrom (“The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”) handling the middle one. Hughes says the plan is to retain the fun tone of the films that works because it doesn’t take the violence seriously, and there’s plenty of “winking and nodding to the audience”.
One area where things are different is on a technical level, where the glossy shine of the most modern-day visuals is replaced by something a bit more old-school:
“The lenses we used were MGM and Pathe and built in the early 1950s. They’re not great lenses by today’s DP standards, but they were used to shoot Dr. Zhivago, Cool Hand Luke, and The Graduate.
If you look closely at it, you’ll see all these weird flares and glares and, at the bottom of the frame is a little blurry, and the top over here is a little blurry. It’s because of these imperfect lenses that were made in 1950.”
Hughes adds that the “last thing I would want is to leave people bummed out” with the series, and all those involved want the show to “rock you, musically, sonically, visually with colorful characters”. Expect plenty of 1970s music drops as well.
“The Continental: From the World of John Wick” will air as three feature-length episodes in September through Peacock in the United States.
