A new report from The Hashtag Show states that Stahelski, the director of the previous John Wick films will be returning for Chapter 3, with principal photography set to begin in New York City on March 1st, with Spain and Russia being considered for possible additional locations. The Wolverine actor, Hiroyuki Sanada, is purportedly joining the cast as the film’s central antagonist, a leader of a Japanese crime syndicate.
The director had this to say about the mythology of the film and where you can expect the sequel to go:
“We want, not so much to go bigger on the third one, but to show you more of the intricacies of the world… I feel like there are all these different subtleties that I skipped over in Number Two, that I’d like to go back to on [chapter three] and show you the inner workings of different parts of New York. So rather than massive set pieces, I’d like to show you cooler and more intricate ones… I think it would be a mistake budget wise and creatively to just go big and blow up a freeway. That’s not our gig. That’s a comic book or a Bond gig. We want to show you cool and intricate details. What are those little details in everyday life? Hopefully – we make people look at garbage collectors and cleaner vans and homeless people a little differently now.”
In addition to the upcoming third chapter, Stahelski,is also set to direct the pilot for The Continental, a new Starz series set in the same universe, focusing on the assassin hotel that is (supposed to be) neutral ground.
John Wick Chapter III is set for theatrical release on May 17, 2019.
