Some upcoming John Wick installments will dive deep into the franchise’s world and its history. One of these upcoming spinoffs is The Continental: From The World Of John Wick. Once described as a series, The Continental has become a trilogy of feature-length episodes set in the John Wick universe—specifically, 40 years before the events of the movies, focusing on the notorious Continental institution. And now, we know more about this John Wick prequel series, including its plot, release window, and what we can expect it will add to the universe.
The Continental‘s Plot
The official synopsis for The Continental shares the following:
The three-part event will explore the origin behind the iconic hotel-for-assassins centerpiece of the John Wick universe through the eyes and actions of a young Winston Scott, as he’s dragged into the Hell-scape of 1970’s New York City to face a past he thought he’d left behind. Winston charts a deadly course through the hotel’s mysterious underworld in a harrowing attempt to seize the hotel where he will eventually take his future throne.
Recently, The Continental director Albert Hughes spoke to Deadline and shared more about what eager fans can expect when the series finally airs. He noted:
The whole point was to explore the mythology more, the secrets of the hotel through the characters Winston and Charon, and play with the intersecting characters and storylines. There’s this wild cast of new characters that come in and out of that world… I’d say they can expect the high style that the John Wick films give. But different, because we’re in the ‘70s. It’s good eye candy, escapism and fun. That’s the one thing that drew me in. I think they have fun with it because it’s something different than what you see on TV. It’s a longer form than the movies, but the challenge was, can you keep in the fun? I think so many women are fans because you don’t take this violence seriously, it’s almost a ballet dance, a ballet of bullets. People can check out and go, oh, it’s not like the real world. This is not, this is not the real world. And I think that’s what’s so genius about what Chad and Keanu have done with that series. They’re winking and nodding to the audience. That’s what Chad said, I’m winking and nodding a lot, and I do the same in the series.
Fans can also expect a slew of John Wick Easter eggs to come their way. Hughes offers that some are more apparent while others are “buried pretty well.”
The Continental Release Window, Production Team, and Cast
The Continental will release sometime in September of 2023. And though initially slated to stream on Starz, the John Wick series will actually air on Peacock. And Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Chair Joe Drake notes, “The episodes are nearly finished.”
Albert Hughes will direct the first and third installments of the trilogy. He is best known for Menace II Society, Dead Presidents, and The Book of Eli. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’s Charlotte Brändström will direct the second episode. Meanwhile, John Wick director Chad Stahelski and screenwriter Derek Kolstad will executive produce.
Given that the mini-series takes place 40 years before John Wick, we can expect that the character won’t make an appearance. Instead, it will focus on a much younger version of Ian McShane’s Winston character, circa the 1970s. Colin Woodell plays this character.
Additional cast includes Mel Gibson (Cormac), Mishel Prada (KD), Ben Robson (Frankie), Hubert Point-Du Jour (Miles), Nhung Kate (Yen), Jessica Allain (Lou), Ayomide Adegun (Charon), Jeremy Bobb (Mayhew) and Peter Greene (Uncle Charlie).
Given the timeline, this series probably won’t tie too much into the upcoming films, but we’re more than fine with that. Part of the fun of the Wick franchise is learning how these hitmen networks operate. We can’t wait to see how they work without the Baba Yaga on their backs.
Originally published on July 29, 2019.
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