Ballerina: Everything We Know About The John Wick Spin-Off

There are three generally accepted rules for living a long and happy life. 1) You don’t spit into the wind. That’s really just common sense. 2) You don’t tug on Superman’s cape. 3) By God, if you really want to live a long life, you 100%, not under any circumstances, for any reason, F*ck with John Wick’s dog. We have all learned nothing good happens from making John Wick angry. While we’ve already had one spin-off of the successful franchise, the upcoming film Ballerina promises to take us even further into the crazy underworld of one of the most fascinating franchises to emerge in a long time.

Where Did Ballerina Come From?

This film began life way back in 2017 as a stand-alone film. Shay Hatten wrote an action script with a female lead called Ballerina. The lead would be a ballerina assassin who goes on a revenge killing spree. Lionsgate picked up the script and decided to bring Hatten on board to rewrite it to make it part of the John Wick universe.

To give it a proper jumping-off point, the ballerina program was shown in John Wick 3, with Anjelica Huston leading the group as The Director. This was used to draw in the audience and make them curious about this other organization. The film was officially pushed forward as Len Wiseman (Underworld) was brought on to serve as director.

What’s It About?

From the little information available about the film, it seems to be a revenge film set within the John Wick universe. Rooney is our title ballerina who this ruthless organization is training. She plans to use these newly acquired skills to hunt down the people responsible for murdering her family. Nothing quells the soul quite like good old bloody revenge. If the action scenes in the previous Wick films are anything to go by, we’re in for a wild ride.

Who’s In It?

Once the script was set, it was time to find some actors. Even before Len Wiseman joined the project, it was thought that Lady Gaga might be brought in for the lead role. Once Wiseman was on the project, it was said they were using actress Chloë Grace Moretz as the template for what they were looking for. Her turn in Kick-Ass as Hit Girl had set her up as a badass fighter, and the studio wanted someone similar.

Ana de Armas

In 2022, it was announced that Armas had secured the lead role and would lead this new hopeful franchise. The character of Rooney had a small cameo in John Wick 3 but was played by ballerina Unity Phelan. The filmmakers decided to recast her with someone who had more experience. Armas entered negotiations, and with her strong turn in the last James Bond film, it’s easy to see why they chose her.

Anjelica Huston

The legendary actress returns in her role as the Director. This shady organization seems in line with the Black Widow program we saw in the MCU. They take young women and teach them how to become the perfect assassins. Having Huston in this role is excellent and gives it a nice balance with Ian McShane’s character from the Wick movies.

Norman Reedus

While Reedus has had major roles in films like The Boondock Saints and Blade II, he gained popularity in The Walking Dead as Daryl Dixon. He hasn’t done many film roles since, but this is one of his highest-profile roles since the end of the main Walking Dead series. Much hasn’t been released about his role, but it is thought he could be Rooney’s main physical adversary throughout the film.

Gabriel Byrne

Legendary actor Gabriel Byrne will lend his talents as the man behind everything that has gone wrong in Rooney’s life. He brings a grand presence to everything he’s in and will be great in this role. Looking at his range from movies like The Usual Suspects, End of Days, and Hereditary, you know he will bring something unique to the character.

Returning Characters

Ballerina will be set between John Wick 3 and 4, allowing a few familiar characters to appear even if they are no longer living in the proper series. Ian McShane will be back as the head of the Continental Hotel. Lance Reddick will be seen in his last on-screen role after his sudden death last year. Of course, the biggest appearance will be Keanu Reeves dropping in as John Wick one more time. This is possible due to the film being set before the events of John Wick 4 since we apparently saw his death.

When Can We See It?

Well, we were originally supposed to see it in June of this year. In February, it was announced that the film would be pushed back by a whole year to June 6, 2025. The reasoning was said to be that they had devised some new action scenes that they wanted to include. Ian McShane, on the other hand, said that after seeing the first cut of the film, they brought in Wick mainstay and Ballerina producer Chad Stahelski to redo large parts of the film to “protect the franchise.” With this extra year, it looks like they were hoping to shore up any weak points. Let’s hope it’s worth it, as extensive re-shoots are not usually seen as a good thing.

Are you excited to see Ballerina when it opens in theaters next summer? Let us know in the comments.