Prepare yourselves, because a fifth installment of the John Wick franchise has been officially confirmed.
Movie studio Lionsgate has revealed that John Wick 5 will be filmed back-to-back with the fourth movie when titular star Keanu Reeves is available for shooting.
As reported by Deadline, Lionsgate's CEO Jon Feltheimer said during an earnings call: "We're also busy preparing scripts for the next two installments of our John Wick action franchise, with John Wick 4 slated to hit theatres Memorial Day weekend 2022.
"We hope to shoot both John Wick 4 & 5 back to back when Keanu becomes available early next year."
Per The Hollywood Reporter, the first three movies in the John Wick franchise have generated over $579 million worldwide. In addition, a Starz John Wick TV series called The Continental is also slated for premiere following the release of the fourth movie - so it is no surprise the studio wants to continue expanding the franchise.
Sadly, as a result of the ongoing pandemic, fans will have to wait even longer for even more Wick as the fourth installment in the movie franchise was delayed a year - with its May 21, 2021 release date being pushed to May 27, 2022.
In an interview with Collider, director Chad Stahelski said prior to the push-back: "Between how much we want to expand the John Wick - let's just call it a 'franchise', I guess - and the pandemic, I couldn't tell you a release date for the next one. I mean, Matrix was only four weeks in when this all happened.
"So, Keanu's gotta go finish his commitment up on The Matrix, which is a big deal and which I think will probably take him until the end of the year. Then we have to go into our prep mode and then we'll start.
"So release dates, I'm sure with every production from Dave [Leitch's] stuff to our stuff, who knows right now."
Per Variety, Feltheimer has also spoken out about his desire to ensure that Lionsgate is one of the first movie studios to resume production on "fresh content":
"With the appetite for fresh content at an all-time high and options for consumers dwindling due to the global shutdown, we made it a strategic priority to be one of the first major studios back into production.
"Over the past five months, we’ve put together a thoughtful strategy to restart production with protocols to best ensure the safety of cast and crew."
But if you're desperate for your Keanu Reeves fix, you'll be happy to hear that the third Bill & Ted movie will be released in both theaters and home VOD on September 1, 2020!
