John Wick: Chapter 4 – The Real Reason The Ending Was Left Ambiguous
When factoring in the timeline of "John Wick," it's safe to say that as much as death has been pretty definitive for some of its characters, the one person to come back from the edge has been Keanu Reeves' heroic killer hitman himself. After taking such a severe tumble in "John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum" and getting up again, fans would be forgiven for hoping the Baba Yaga is enjoying a quiet life away from markers and consecrated ground following the fourth film's events. Unfortunately, as far as Reeves and director Chad Stahelski see it, Wick finally did burn out. However, it wasn't always planned that way.
Speaking to Empire, Stahelski revealed that a different ending had been shot, dangling a thread of hope for everyone's dog-loving legend to make a comeback. "We shot an ending where you actually saw John Wick at the end of the movie. So it was very clear that he was still alive." Thanks to feedback from test screenings, the film ultimately went in the direction the director and his leading man had always intended. "The audiences we tested with absolutely preferred the ambiguous ending."
That's the thing about ambiguous endings, though. Fans will always hang on and hope they can return to more of this story. The only question from the storytellers, however, is why?
Never say never to the return of John Wick
To consider a comeback for the killer with a penchant for pencil executions, it sounds like Stahelski and Reeves would need the same essential ingredient they had for "John Wick: Chapter 4." Speaking with Variety after a film screening at SXSW, Reeves recalled, "When Chad and I were talking about it, the 'why' is death, and it was John Wick's dead. For him to get his peace or his freedom, in a way, that was the reason to make the movie. You gotta have the 'why.'"
With that in mind, why would the Boogeyman-hunting hotshot be revealed alive and well? More importantly, would Reeves even want to come back to it? "I don't know, I guess I'm going to have to lean on 'never say never,'" the star admitted to Entertainment Weekly, with the only specification being that his colleague behind the camera was involved. "I mean, I wouldn't do a 'John Wick' film without Chad Stahelski," Reeves assured. "We'd have to see what that looked like. For me, it feels really right that John Wick finds peace."
So, are we thinking he's back? Maybe. Maybe not. With a handful of spinoffs in the works and the three-part visit to "The Continental" to enjoy, perhaps it's best to let John have a break. Just for now, at least.