Stahelski opposed Reeves' Ballerina cameo but backed spin-off

John Wick director Chad Stahelski has disclosed he initially opposed Keanu Reeves' appearance in the spin-off Ballerina, though he ultimately recognized its necessity in giving the film "a fighting chance."

The John Wick franchise stands out as a rare case where each sequel surpasses its predecessor commercially, culminating in John Wick: Chapter 4's impressive $440 million global haul.

Reflecting on this success, Stahelski explained Reeve's Ballerina cameo in a Hollywood Reporter interview. The director admitted resisting Wick's appearance in Ana de Armas' spin-off at first, noting the role wasn't scripted originally but ultimately served a strategic purpose.

"That concept wasn't in the initial screenplay," Stahelski revealed. "Frankly, I resisted it initially. But I recognize its value — we wanted to support director Len Wiseman. Following John Wick 4's massive $440 million success, we couldn't reasonably expect audiences to return to Chapter 1's modest $18 million indie scale."

"To compete at our current level, the film needed stronger footing. From the studio's perspective, inserting Wick into Ballerina through carefully established timeline continuity became the clearest transition strategy."

Despite these efforts, Ballerina's $51 million global debut underperformed expectations last weekend — suggesting Reeves' involvement didn't sufficiently boost audience turnout. Lionsgate attempted emphasizing the John Wick connection by branding Ballerina as "From the World of John Wick."

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Additional franchise expansions remain in development, though Reeves won't appear universally. Stahelski confirmed John Wick won't feature in the upcoming Donnie Yen spinoff Caine.

"The Yen project exists separately from Wick," Stahelski clarified. "This celebrates classic kung fu cinema — if John Wick 1 honored Charles Bronson and Lee Marvin influences, Donnie's film pays homage to Chow Yun-fat, John Woo and Wong Kar-wai traditions. That distinct martial arts focus makes its positioning clearer."

IGN's Ballerina review awarded 8/10, praising: "Despite a sluggish opening, Ballerina earns her place in Wick's world through equally inventive combat choreography and a protagonist who firmly stands on her own merits."

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