‘John Wick’ junkies hyped by the spinoff’s star, but discouraged by its director

Like any self-respecting franchise that’s proven itself to be a consistent moneymaker, John Wick is being spun off in multiple directions. Not only does Keanu Reeves return in next year’s Chapter 4, but prequel series The Continental is heading to streaming next year, with Ana de Armas’ Ballerina finally getting in front of cameras next week to kick off production.

The offshoot of the epic assassin saga has been in the works for years, but it’s finally gearing up to shoot with the unstoppably-rising star in the lead role. She may have claimed that she doesn’t want to be an action hero, but de Armas is racking up a fair few credits in quick succession that say otherwise.

Her scene-stealing role in No Time to Die has fans hyped to see what she can bring to the Wick universe, and the contributions made to the script by Academy Award-winning Promising Young Woman writer and director Emerald Fennell is also an encouraging sign, but many of them are struggling to get excited due to the presence of director Len Wiseman.

Best known for his work on Underworld, the dismal Total Recall remake, and the solid-if-unspectacular Live Free or Die Hard, a recent Reddit thread discussing Ballerina has offered up one major recurring thread. In summation, the consensus is basically “Ana de Armas: Good. Len Wiseman: Meh.”

To be fair, Ballerina will mark his first feature-length directorial credit since 2012, so maybe he’s ready to embark on the resurgent comeback nobody could have predicted. On the other hand, the Wick brand is famed for its action-packed set pieces, so he really needs to deliver, and a lot of people don’t seem to think that he can.