“Ian McShane Urges Respect for Keanu Reeves’ Future in John Wick Franchise: ‘Let Him Rest'”

The franchise’s Winston Scott actor shares a status update on John Wick 5 after a recent chat with Keanu Reeves.

John Wick franchise’s star Ian McShane hints that star Keanu Reeves “deserves a good rest” from playing the eponymous hitman despite the inevitability of John Wick 5, which is currently in development at Lionsgate.

Speaking with Screen Rant, McShane, known for playing The Continental hotel proprietor Winston Scott, believes Reeves has earned a break from playing Wick for the last decade, admitting his hope the movie franchise moves away from the title assassin.

After recently reconnecting with Reeves, McShane believes he needs to recharge after putting so much effort into portraying Wick on-screen.

John Wick: Chapter 4 producer Basil Iwanyk reveals what needs to happen for Keanu Reeves to return to the franchise should a fifth film happen.

Keanu Reeves Deserves a “Good Rest”

“I think Keanu deserves a good rest as long as he wants. I spoke to him the other day, he’s resting for a while after the beating he’s taken over the last 10 years from all the assassins of the world,” he said.

“Let him rest until he decides to rise from his grave once again, or wherever he sleeps, because really, I’m his father, and he’s the vampire.

So, I’m Vlad, The Impaler. [Laughs] There’s a whole horror film to be made out of this. Everything can zoom into something else. There’s no rules.”

McShane has starred alongside Reeves in all four John Wick movies, with his character using The Continental as a safe haven for Wick and his allies.

The duo will also appear in Ballerina, the upcoming John Wick spinoff film starring Ana de Armas as the title character, with the events of the movie taking place between Chapter 3 – Parabellum and Chapter 4.

John Wick: Chapter 4 director Chad Stahelski explains exactly why he opted to scrap the movie’s “Hollywood-esque” alternate ending.

John Wick 5 was confirmed by Lionsgate last May despite the apparent demise of Reeves’ central character at the end of Chapter 4.

Lionsgate have made it clear that John Wick 5 won’t happen without Reeves, though it’s unclear if he will return for the upcoming sequel or how his character will be reintroduced following Chapter 4‘s ending.

Chapter 4 proved to be the most successful installment of the John Wick franchise, both critically and commercially, with the film grossing over $440 million worldwide following its release last March.

Initially, John Wick 5 was supposed to be shot concurrently with Chapter 4, but director Chad Stahelski opted against doing so due to cast and crew exhaustion, among other factors.

Reeves previously admitted the stunts for Chapter 4 took their toll, despite them coming out well in the end as they added to the film’s much-lauded action sequences.

Along with John Wick 5, the franchise is set to expand after Stahelski announced he will be overseeing more multimedia projects, which will include multiple spinoff TV shows and an anime series.

Since Chapter 4, the John Wick franchise released the spinoff Peacock drama miniseries, The Continental, which chronicles Winston’s ascendancy to becoming the eponymous hotel’s chief proprietor.

However, McShane did not appear in The Continental as Colin Woodell played a younger version of Winston on the show.