John Wick 2

The much-anticipated follow-up to Keanu Reeves’ action-packed John Wick, John Wick: Chapter 2 has some big shoes to fill. The first John Wick was a welcome surprise: an action-thriller with some masterful stuntwork and gun handling directed by an actual stuntman, about a former assassin who goes on a killing rampage to avenge his dog was a delicious stew of an action movie. The sequel picks up just a short time after the first leaves off, and we see Wick heading to Rome and ready to take out some more bad guys. Although sequels are always chancy prospects, director Chad Stahelski is optimistic about the next chapter living up to the first.

While there are no shortage of talented action stars working today, I’d be hard-pressed to name two American actors I like more than Tom Cruise and Keanu Reeves. Both Cruise and Reeves are often called upon to learn elaborate fight choreography in lieu of snappy editing or misleading camera work. We’ve come to appreciate each actor’s hard work with the training reels for movies like John Wick and Collateral, and speaking frankly, watching someone like Keanu Reeves practice his quick draw for hours on end is the perfect cure for whatever bad CGI ails you.

Yeah, yeah, he’s thinking he’s back. That John Wick just can’t seem to stay retired, and according to a recent update, he’ll continue to remain un-retired for a third film. In the meantime, we have some new photos from John Wick: Chapter 2, which feature Keanu Reeves in a little of that neon lighting that suits him so well, along with some characters who aren’t named John Wick.

As Laurence Fishburne says in the new trailer for ‘John Wick Chapter 2,’ the titular assassin is not very good at retiring. Keanu Reeves’ John Wick is back for the sequel, and now it looks like he’ll stick around for a third film.

John Wick is back, and this time with a new pup, a new suit, and a lotta guns.

These days it seems like every recognizable actor above the age of 50 is getting their own spin on the Taken franchise. As a result, not a lot of people batted an eye when it was announced that Keanu Reeves would be playing a retired contract killer in some mid-range action movie called John Wick. Imagine our collective surprise, then, when John Wick was not only not another Taken clone, but one of the best action movies of the decade. Fans were quick to clamor for another glimpse at the violent action and posh criminal underworld of the first film.

Listen, we’re all only human. Even the most ardent fans of the Hollywood rumor mill can still hit their limit for television spots and blurry set photos. When it seems like every other post at a news site is of some upcoming comic book movie you don’t care about, take a moment and remember that there are films out there that play the marketing game better than anyone else. For me, movies like John Wick Chapter 2 are what make the rumor beat all worthwhile.

He is thinking he’s back. And this time it’s for a social affair! You can assassinate many bad guys on a social affair, right? You can? Okay then. Social affair.

If there’s any recent movie that seems like an endlessly renewable resource, it’s John Wick. Just get the eternally youthful Keanu Reeves, give him some reason to be mad (in the first movie he had a dead dog to avenge), about 300 mobsters to shoot in the head, and let ’er rip for 95 minutes. Next year’s John Wick: Chapter 2 looks to continue the hitman’s saga with another journey into the dark underbelly of the assassin economy.

If you haven’t been paying attention to Twitter for the last hour (or if you’re an enlightened soul who manages to function without an account), then you may have missed the first official photo from John Wick: Chapter Two. Yeah, Keanu Reeves is thinking he’s back, and this time…he’s bringing his tailor. In all seriousness, we could use more action movies about sharp-dressed assassins with great hair who love dogs.