Anyone who’s tuned in to the John Wick franchise will likely jump at any chance to watch the rich mythos spread even further, even if such shows or films are burdened with the unenviable task of following Chapter 4.
That’s not going to slow down Ballerina, the upcoming spinoff starring Ana de Armas in the lead role as another vengeful product of the Ruska Roma crime syndicate. If anything, it’s only going to make its debut that much sweeter.
De Armas portrays Rooney, an assassin looking to exact revenge on the people who murdered her family. Several regulars will also get involved, including John Wick himself, New York’s Continental manager Winston Scott, and his concierge Charon, played by Lance Reddick in one of his final screen appearances.
While Rooney and John both come from the same syndicate, they’re two very different people; a contrast that will anchor Ballerina‘s unique spin on the world, according to Chapter 4 producer Erica Lee, who will also produce the upcoming spinoff.
In an interview with ScreenRant, Lee pointed out how where John is always trying to break out of the High Table’s world, Rooney is interested in becoming part of it, already making for a marked departure in terms of characterization.
“With each John Wick movie, it gets tweaked a bit. But it’s really interesting because I think the character of John Wick is always trying to get out, and I think that the character that Ana de Armas plays in Ballerina is trying to get in. Just there alone is a different character study.”
Indeed, it will be interesting to see how Rooney’s unique position helps to paint the world of John Wick, which we’ve only really gotten to see through the eyes of Keanu Reeves’ title hero up to this point. Again, it will be no easy job to follow Chapter 4, but we have a hunch that Ballerina will solve that by standing tall on its own two feet.