John Wick Is Called John Wick Because Keanu Reeves Said So

If the studio had its way, Keanu Reeves’ gun-fu spectacular John Wick would’ve been called Scorn. At least that was what screenwriter Derek Kolstad wanted to call it. But Reeves, for some reason, had something else in mind.

Speaking to Comicbook.com, Kolstad explained, “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.”

And neither can we. Scorn sounds too much like a Cinemax skin flick from the 1990s. John Wick isn't just a title, it's also shorthand for meticulously choreographed and photographed badass martial arts-cum-gunplay. (The opposite of shaky-camera aesthetics of the Jason Bourne movies.)

Pre-COVID-19 pandemic, the world was so looking forward to see Reeves go head to head with himself at the box-office: John Wick: Chapter 4 and The Matrix 4 are slated to open in the US on the same day, May 21, 2021.

Alas, the global health crisis threw a spanner into the works. The John Wick sequel is now delayed to May 27, 2022. Reeves will start filming that once he’s done with The Matrix 4, which will resume production in July for an undated release in 2021.

Besides the fourth John Wick instalment, a TV series spin-off, The Continental — which will focus on the chain of exclusive hotels frequented by assassins — is also being developed. At press time, no official cast list has been announced.