From The World Of John Wick: Ballerina is one of the most hotly anticipated movies on the 2025 movie schedule. As a big fan of the franchise and the world it has created, it was high on my list, too. I was a little worried about how the reported problems with the production, including director Len Wiseman stepping away at one point because of a health issue, would turn it into a disaster on screen.
I’m happy to report that it isn’t the hot mess I feared it could be. Ballerina is actually pretty good. It does seem, however, that the production turmoil has led to a real problem with the franchise’s timeline. Before I go any further, I have to make it clear that there will be major spoilers ahead for Ballerina (and the third and fourth John Wick movies, for that matter), so proceed with caution if you haven’t seen the Ana de Armas-led action movie.
Just What Were The Original Plans For Keanu Reeves In The Movie?
Keanu Reeves, who, of course, plays John Wick in four movies in the franchise, would make an appearance. We also knew that Ballerina would take place between the third and fourth installments of the John Wick movies. We just didn’t know how big a role Reeves would have, or how it would work into the plot.
Chad Stahelski, stepped in after initial production wrapped to do re-shoots with Reeves, but just how much work he did is subject to debate. Some reports claim there were extensive re-shoots, but Stahelski himself has downplayed just how much he did. Stahelski told The Hollywood Reporter,
We just went in for a couple of weeks. We changed some of the action sequences and made up for some time that Len just didn’t have. He didn’t have enough time to do some of the bigger shots that it deserved.
Reeves’ role is much bigger than I thought it would be, with Wick appearing in much of the final act. It seems that at least some of this footage is what Stahelski is responsible for. It is also the part of Ballerina that really messes with the franchise timeline.
between the third and fourth John Wick movies, and the first scene with Reeves in the theater seemingly confirms that, as we see the scene from Parabellum. We also know that Wick is in bad shape at the end of Parabellum, barely clinging to life after falling from the roof of The Continental. He’s certainly not in any kind of shape to travel to Europe and take on a village of assassins, as he does alongside Eve in Ballerina.
Most speculation is that there are about six months between Parabellum and Chapter Four, and we know that during that time, however long it is, he is recovering from his extensive injuries with The Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne). We also know that Wick has been expelled from the Ruska Roma by The Director, yet it is Wick whom she calls to help Eve in the village of their rivals. There is no possible way that he could have gotten back in fighting shape and back on good terms with The Director in those few months between the third and fourth movies.
Lance Reddick) at the front desk, and Charon was tragically killed in Chapter 4.
the film’s delays, we all just need to be okay with the glitch in the matrix, so to speak. This film still delivers in the ways I want to see in the John Wick universe film, it’s just a little frustrating that the creative forces behind the franchise have elegantly built a really fun world, and this is a blemish on it.
If you want to catch up or rewatch all four John Wick movies, you can do so with a Peacock subscription, which is how I made sure I wasn’t going crazy with these timeline questions.