Keanu Reeves confirms Ballerina cameo for John Wick

John Wick: Chapter 4 premiered last night, and during a post-screening Q&A, Keanu Reeves confirmed what has long been rumored – that his character will cameo in spinoff movie Ballerina.

The new John Wick flick received its world premiere at the SXSW festival in Austin Texas last night, with star Keanu Reeves in attendance.

The action epic – which clocks in at nearly three hours – has received positive reviews pretty much across the board, with the Rotten Tomatoes score currently sitting at 88% from 26 reviews.

After the screening Keanu took to the stage with director Chad Stahelski, and fielded questions from the audience, one of which concerned Ballerina, a forthcoming film that plays out in the John Wick universe.

Keanu Reeves confirms Ballerina cameo for John Wick

Keanu Reeves said that John Wick would indeed be making an appearance in Ballerina. He didn’t go into detail regarding the size of that appearance, and whether it would be substantial or merely a cameo. But having Reeves onboard is sure to raise the profile of the film.

Other John Wick veterans are in the cast, including Ian McShane (who plays Winston), Lance Reddick (who returns as Charon), and Angelica Huston (who reprises her role as The Director).

The recently Oscar-nominated Ana de Armas plays the lead, while the likes of Norman Reedus, Gabriel Byrne, Catalina Sandino Moreno, and Ann Parillaud co-star. With the latter a particularly interesting choice as the French actress is best known for playing assassin Nikita.

What is Ballerina about?

The Hollywood Reporter gives this synopsis for Ballerina: “The plot involves a young woman (de Armas) with killer skills who uses said skills to get revenge when her family is killed by hitmen.”

John Wick: Chapter 3 scribe Shay Hatten has written the script, while Underworld helmer Len Wiseman directs the series. There’s no word yet on a release date, but we do know that the film’s fight scenes will be on “another level,” with de Armas recently telling Jimmy Fallon: “We’ve been in Prague filming for four months. We still have one more month to go. And I’m in pain. You know, my body, my back, everything hurts. I’m complaining, I’m sore, I’m bruised. Bond was fifteen minutes. This is a whole movie, another level.”

John Wick: Chapter 4 opens in the UK and US on March 24, while you can find all our coverage on the movie here.