Ballerina (upcoming film)
Ballerina | |
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Directed by | Len Wiseman |
Screenplay by | |
Story by | Shay Hatten |
Based on | Characters by Derek Kolstad |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Romain Lacourbas |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Lionsgate |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Ballerina is an upcoming American action thriller film directed by Len Wiseman, from a screenplay he co-wrote with Shay Hatten in collaboration with Emerald Fennell, from an original story by Hatten. It is intended to be the fifth film and seventh installment overall of the John Wick franchise. Starring Ana de Armas as Rooney, a ballerina-assassin previously portrayed by Unity Phelan in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019), with Ian McShane, Keanu Reeves, Lance Reddick, and Anjelica Huston reprising their roles from previous films, filming began in November 2022, in Prague.
Premise
Taking place between the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and Chapter 4, ballerina-assassin Rooney hunts the assassins who previously killed her family.
Cast
- Ana de Armas as Rooney: A ballet dancer who seeks revenge, by hunting the murderers of her family. The character was previously portrayed by Unity Phelan in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019).
- Ian McShane as Winston Scott: The enigmatic owner of the Continental Hotel.
- Keanu Reeves as Jardani Jovonovich / Johnathan "John" Wick: A professional hitman known as one of the most dangerous assassins, and fearfully referred to in the hitman underworld as "Baba Yaga".
- Lance Reddick as Charon, the concierge at the Continental Hotel in New York.
- Anjelica Huston as "The Director"
Additionally, Gabriel Byrne, Norman Reedus, and Catalina Sandino Moreno have been cast in undisclosed roles.
Production
Development
In July 2017, Lionsgate Films acquired Shay Hatten's action thriller Ballerina, with Thunder Road Films producing the film with Hatten rewriting the script to be a part of the John Wick franchise, with the title character, Rooney, ultimately being written into the third main film, John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum in a cameo role ahead of the production of Ballerina, portrayed by Unity Phelan. By October 2019, Len Wiseman was hired to direct the film. In May 2020, Stahelski stated that Wiseman had read the script earlier, and approached the studio with a pitch of how he would develop the project, based on Hatten's draft, for which the proof of concept had previously been uploaded to YouTube in September 2017. Stahelski met with Wiseman, and approached executives to hire the filmmaker. He confirmed that he and his team will work closely with Wiseman on the action sequences and stunts for the film, while acknowledging that Wiseman's filmmaking style will add variety to the franchise. At that point, Wiseman and Hatten were working on a newer draft of the script. By April 2022, the film was officially announced by Lionsgate.
In July 2022, de Armas revealed that she had personally selected Emerald Fennell to contribute to the script as one of its writers.
Casting
In May 2020, it was reported that the studio is looking for an actress to star in the film, with Chloë Grace Moretz as the template for the kind of talent they are looking for. By October 2021, Ana de Armas entered negotiations to portray the titular character, a ballerina-assassin named Rooney, replacing Unity Phelan, who previously portrayed the character in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019). By April 2022 at CinemaCon, Lionsgate officially announced that de Armas will star in the lead role. In November 2022, it was announced that Keanu Reeves, Ian McShane, Lance Reddick, and Anjelica Huston had joined the cast and will reprise their roles from previous films of the franchise; as Jardani Jovonovich / John Wick, Winston Scott, Charon, and "the Director", respectively. In December 2022, Gabriel Byrne, Norman Reedus, and Catalina Sandino Moreno joined the supporting cast in unnamed roles.
Filming
Principal photography was initially scheduled to commence in summer 2022. Filming officially began rolling on November 7, 2022, in Prague.