Keanu Reeves’ Ballerina Cameo as John Wick Revealed at CinemaCon Screening
Ballerina footage screened at CinemaCon reveals Ana de Armas’ interactions with Keanu Reeves, Norman Reedus, and more.
A dancer encounters the Baba Yaga in a first look at the John Wick spinoff Ballerina. While the footage was screened exclusively at CinemaCon, descriptions of the footage have revealed the cameo featuring Keanu Reeves’ John Wick return.
Though it’s currently unavailable to the public, Entertainment Weekly reported on the Ballerina trailer shown at Lionsgate’s CinemaCon panel, introducing fans to the vengeful goals of Ana de Armas’ ballerina-turned-killer Rooney. A disciple of the crime syndicate featured in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, the trailer previewed Rooney fighting off various henchmen, utilizing a flamethrower, and meeting a new character in the John Wick universe played by Norman Reedus.
Fans also got to see appearances by Wick veterans Anjelica Huston, Ian McShane, and Lance Reddick (in one of his final roles) before Rooney confronts John Wick (Keanu Reeves) himself, asking “How do I start doing what you do?” In turn, Wick simply replies, “Looks like you already have.”
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Originally scheduled for a June release, Ballerina was pushed back a full year to 2025, with Bill Skarsgård’s upcoming The Crow remake taking its place in theaters. According to McShane, this choice was due to Ballerina filming new scenes, with most of the franchise’s stars and director Chad Stahelski coming back to ensure its quality as an action film remains strong.
As he explained, “they have to protect it. Because Keanu’s in it as well, and it takes place between John Wick 3 and John Wick 4.” Outside of Reedus, Gabriel Byrne will play Rooney’s primary antagonist, while David Castañeda and Sharon Duncan-Brewster joined the cast due to the aforementioned reshoots. Official names for these new characters, however, have yet to be announced.
Ballerina Follows the Prequel Series The Continental
Ballerina marks the first spinoff set in the contemporary JohnWick timeline, following up 2023’s limited prequel series The Continental — which received mixed reviews from critics — detailing how Winston Scott became owner of the New York Continental.
Despite Wick supposedly meeting his end in John Wick: Chapter 4, Lionsgate revealed that a fifth Wick film is in development, as well as other unnamed spinoffs. The John Wick franchise also continues to influence the style and direction of various modern action films, ranging from Bob Odenkirk’s Nobody to Dev Patel’s new action film Monkey Man.
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Outside the Wick franchise, Lionsgate’s upcoming action films include The Ministry of Ungetlemenly Warfare and Boy Kills World, as well as the Borderlands video game adaptation. Meanwhile, de Armas — who previously demonstrated her action movie skills in No Time to Die and Ghosted — will also star in director Ron Howard’s thriller Eden.
Ballerina releases in theaters on June 6, 2025.
