How Keanu Reeves came up with the name for ‘John Wick’
Undoubtedly among the most beloved actors working today, Keanu Reeves has managed to build robust fan bases across completely different generations. Initially rising to stardom in the 1990s due to high-profile outings in projects such as Speed and The Matrix, Reeves has remained a vital part of popular culture. One of the primary reasons for this is his involvement in the insanely famous phenomenon that the John Wick franchise has become.
Derek Kolstad’s neo-noir film series is the perfect representation of the zeitgeist, tapping into meme culture as well as the aesthetic frameworks of modern cinematography. Starring Reeves as the titular character, the series follows the dark adventures of an assassin who gets pulled back into the gritty life he left behind after his dog is murdered. Since this is the kind of plot trajectory that would appeal to even the most hardened of hearts, it’s no surprise that the franchise has become so huge.
After the latest addition to the franchise – John Wick: Chapter 4 – was released earlier this year, many fans speculated about the future of the series. During a conversation with EW, the actor revealed that Chapter 4 was always designed to be a farewell to the iconic character that has resonated with audiences all over the world. According to Reeves, the franchise always led up to his character’s encounter with death.
Reeves explained: “The first conversation we had was, ‘Why? Why make it?’… And the note behind that note is, what’s the story? And for he and I, it felt like, what was authentic and true was John Wick’s journey to death. That was the first idea; that was the why of why we made the movie. That, for us, was the organic, authentic story to tell for the character of John Wick and the John Wick world. So that was the first idea, that was the first like, that’s what we’re going to do. Okay, now let’s invent a story of how that happens.”
While there are still rumours about where the franchise is headed, it’s interesting to note that John Wick could have taken a completely different direction in the initial phase of production. In fact, it wasn’t even supposed to be called John Wick, but Reeves kept calling the project that in various press releases and interviews, which reinforced the name. After a certain point, the marketing team felt that it was too late to refer to it by its original title – Scorn.
In an interview, creator Derek Kolstad revealed that Reeves had messed up the name in his head, but it ended up working wonders for the publicity of the project. While talking about the incident, he said: “The only reason it’s called John Wick is that Keanu kept referring to it as John Wick… Marketing was like, ‘Dude, that’s four to five million dollars in free advertising so far, so it’s John Wick instead of Scorn.’ I can’t imagine it being Scorn now.”
Watch the trailer for John Wick: Chapter 4 below.
