EJ Moreno on why Ballerina saved the quality of what John Wick puts out…
Despite a lackluster launch at the box office, Ballerina is still giving us hope that ‘From The World of John Wick‘ won’t be an insult. After The Continental spin-off came and went, mostly with vitriol from fans, it didn’t seem like we’d get much good out of expanding the John Wick universe. Then we got From The World of John Wick: Ballerina this past week, and hope was seemingly restored. While it didn’t come with that same polish as the fan-favorite four films before it, Ballerina banged hard enough that many welcomed the idea of more from this wild assassin world.
As the dust settles and we look at this weekend, the numbers weren’t as strong as many would like, but it’s not an “All Hope Is Lost” situation. One thing that came from this weekend is the passionate defense of the film. We saw box office pundits pull out magic math to make it seem as if the numbers weren’t so weak, and the John Wick faithful embraced the film. There was a contingent, however, that wanted more spin-offs rather than something that could ruin where the core story ended. It felt like a perfect storm for this to be a moderate success, but it came in just under that benchmark. There is something to be said about recent films with strong audience scores (CinemaScore and Rotten Tomatoes) that just aren’t clicking with the wider public.
How does Ballerina combat that? By being the bad-ass action film it already is. Only time will tell, but in my in-depth review of the film, there’s a strong case for why this is the exact direction the franchise needs right now. Check out the review below, and be sure to follow us on YouTube for more reviews, exclusive interviews, and other video content…
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Taking place during the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, the film follows Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas), who is beginning her training in the assassin traditions of the Ruska Roma.
Ballerina is directed by Len Wiseman (Underworld) and sees Ana de Armas leading a cast that includes Keanu Reeves, Norman Reedus, Anjelica Huston, Ian McShane, Lance Reddick, Gabriel Byrne, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Robert Maaser, David Casteñeda, and Choi Sooyoung.
Ballerina is now playing in cinemas.
