When you last saw John Wick, he and his beloved dog were fleeing Central Park after a hit was put out on the world’s deadliest assassin after violating the sacrosanct rules of The Continental. Naturally, such a cliffhanger ending sets the bar high for our hero’s return in next year’s “John Wick: Chapter 3”, and it can safely be said that action aficionados and fans of the series as a whole will be absolutely ecstatic about the latest additions to the cast of the film – namely, Mark Dacascos, Tiger Chen, Yayan Ruhian, and Cecep Arif Rahman!
Also set to join the third chapter of the John Wick franchise are Halle Berry, in the role of John Wick’s fellow assassin Sofia, Anjelica Huston as “The Director” of a nefarious organization known as “The High Table”, along with Hiroyuki Sanada of “The Last Samurai”. Keanu Reeves’ co-star from “The Matrix” franchise Laurence Fishburne is also set to return as The Bowery King from 2017’s “John Wick: Chapter 2“, as are Ruby Rose and rapper Common as Wick’s fellow contract killers Ares and Cassian, both of whom our hero left barely clinging to life in their previous encounters – so it goes without saying that John engaging in some pulse-pounding rematches with both is a given!
Famed Iron Chef, Wun Hop Kuen Do and all-around awesome martial arts badass Mark Dacascos, well-known to action fans for 1997’s cult hit “Drive” will reportedly appear in the role of John Wick’s rival assassin, Zero. While there’s no information at present for which roles Tiger, Yayan, and Cecep will play in the film, no introduction (to martial arts fans) is needed!
Yayan Ruhian first brought his extensive Silat skills to the big screen in 2009’s “Merantau“, before stealing the show as the bloodthirsty ‘Mad Dog’ in the 2012 instant classic “The Raid: Redemption“. He would subsequently appear in the 2014 sequel, “The Raid 2“, in the new role of mob hitman Prakoso, meeting a gruesome end at the hands of his fellow Silat master, Cecep Arif Rahman in his debut role as “The Assassin” (who would later go head-to-head with Iko Uwais in the greatest cinematic knife fight of all time at the film’s climax).
The film will also mark the latest collaboration Tiger Chen makes with Keanu Reeves and stuntman-turned-director, Chad Stahelski. A former member of the Yuen Woo-ping stunt team, Tiger Chen became close friends with Keanu Reeves after serving as his martial arts trainer for 1999’s “The Matrix”, and additionally lending his talents as a stuntman for the film’s two sequels. Reeves would later co-finance Tiger’s 2012 Chinese film “Kung Fu Hero”, before the two appeared opposite one another in 2013’s “Man of Tai Chi“, which also marked Reeves’ directorial debut. Tiger will also be seen later this year in the highly anticipated martial arts ensemble “Triple Threat“, alongside martial arts luminaries Tony Jaa, Iko Uwais, Scott Adkins, Michael Jai White, Celina Jade, Michael Bisping and Jeeja Yanin!
“John Wick: Chapter 3” is set to open the doors of The Continental once more on May 19th, 2019. What do you think of this ensemble of high-caliber martial artists joining the film, how do you imagine the fights and showdown finale? Got a fave John Wick fight scene? Let us know in the comments below, join in the conversation, share this on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. (Get more of your FU-nomenal news on demand!)
I’m dumbfounded by the talent this film will be presenting there are no words as a fan (not a practitioner). Here’s hoping there’ll be jaw-dropping action sequences with the additional gunplay. What more can u ask for!