The fourth installment of Keanu Reeves’ ‘John Wick’ film franchise has reportedly cast Japanese actor Hiroyuki Sanada in an undisclosed role (via Deadline). Hiroyuki Sanada has joined the neo-noir action thriller’s cast of Donnie Yen, Shamier Anderson, Rina Sawayama, and, of course, the titular hero Keanu Reeves.
Hiroyuki Sanada is known for his roles in several Hollywood films such as ‘The Wolverine’, ‘Speed Racer’, ‘Life’, and his sword-fighting scene with Jeremy Renner in ‘Avengers: Endgame’. The actor was more recently seen in Zack Snyder’s ‘Army of the Dead’ and ‘Mortal Combat’. Besides films, he has also acted in Jonathan Nolan’s science fiction show ‘Westworld’. While he will next be seen in the upcoming Brad Pitt’s assassin-themed actioner ‘Bullet Train’.
Regarding Hiroyuki Sanada’s casting, the film’s director Chad Stahelski had earlier stated: “Having long admired Hiroyuki as both actor and action performer, I’m thrilled and honored to welcome him to the John Wick family”.
All three Lionsgate ‘John Wick’ films have been helmed by stunt coordinator turned director Chad Stahelski. The first John Wick film was a vigilante revenge action thriller that followed a former elite hitman (Keanu Reeves), who is forced to come out of retirement. He single handily takes on a crime syndicate when Russian gangsters kill his dog and steal his vintage car.
The first ‘John Wick’ film followed by its two equally adrenaline-pumped sequels went on to become box office blockbusters and together grossed over $587 million worldwide.
Currently, ‘John Wick’ is streaming on the Netflix OTT platform while ‘John Wick: Chapter 2’ and ‘John Wick: Chapter 3’ can be streamed on the Lionsgate Play OTT platform.
‘John Wick: Chapter 4’ is slated for its theatrical release on May 27, 2022. Moreover, another sequel ‘John Wick: Chapter 5’ is also reportedly in the works.
We’re hiring!
We are hiring two full-time junior to mid-level writers with the option to work remotely. You need to work a 5-hour shift and be available to write. Interested candidates should email their sample articles to [email protected]. Applications without a sample article will not be considered.