Entertainment
3 Years Later, Keanu Reeves’ $447 Million Blockbuster Makes Mincemeat of Streaming Competition
Keanu Reeves was among the highest-paid stars in Hollywood after The Matrix challenged norms and altered the landscape in 1999. Reeves spent the next decade or so working on smaller-scale projects, with the odd mega-budget tentpole thrown in. But those large-scale films — The Day the Earth Stood Still, Constantine, and 47 Ronin — weren’t as commercially successful as expected. In 2014, Reeves headlined a pared-down action movie that took the audience by surprise — John Wick. Not only did it do solid box-office business, but it also became a home video sensation. It was clear that the film had struck a chord with the audience and that it deserved a franchise of its own. That’s exactly what happened, with each new installment outgrossing the last. Collectively, the action franchise has generated more than $1 billion at the worldwide box office, with the most recent installment having debuted in 2023. The movie is witnessing a resurgence on streaming, as fans wait for a fifth film.
John Wick: Chapter 4 earned a “Certified Fresh” 94% critics’ score and a “Verified Hot” 93% audience score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, where the critics’ consensus reads, “John Wick: Chapter 4 piles on more of everything — and suggests that when it comes to a well-dressed Keanu Reeves dispatching his enemies in lethally balletic style, there can never be too much.” It remains the highest-grossing installment of the series, with $447 million worldwide against a reported budget of $100 million. But the trouble was that it ended with Reeves’ character dying a heroic death. The studio, Lionsgate, had even started planning for a future without Reeves; it green-lit a spin-off series and a spin-off film. But then, to everyone’s surprise, a fifth movie in the main franchise was confirmed with Reeves and director Chad Stahelski returning.
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Here’s Where You Can Watch ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’ Domestically
However, fans will have to wait, as Stahelski is currently busy with his Highlander reboot, starring Henry Cavill. Until then, the director must come up with a plausible explanation for John Wick’s resurrection. Speaking of which, John Wick: Chapter 4 saw a spike in viewership recently. According to FlixPatrol, it was among the most-watched movies on the domestic HBO Max charts this week. Meanwhile, the franchise’s first theatrical spin-off, From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, continues to be a major draw on home video as well, even though it underperformed theatrically. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
- Release Date
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March 22, 2023
- Runtime
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170 minutes
- Writers
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Michael Finch, Shay Hatten, Derek Kolstad
- Producers
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Basil Iwanyk, Chad Stahelski, Erica Lee, Carl Woebcken, Christoph Fisser, Henning Molfenter