Keanu Reeves signs up for animated John Wick film
Lionsgate have officially greenlit an animated John Wick film, with Keanu Reeves on board.
Keanu Reeves has officially signed up for an animated John Wick film.
The project has been in the works for some time, but Lionsgate confirmed on Thursday (05.11.26) that they have greenlit the movie and the 62-year-old star has signed on to reprise his role as the iconic assassin.
Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer noted the film is already in pre-production. It will be produced by Keanu, as well as Thunder Road’s Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee, 87Eleven Entertainment’s Chad Stahelski and Point Grey. Nathan Kahane is an executive producer.
Kubo and the Two Strings filmmaker Shannon Tindle is on board to direct from a script written by Ryan and Kaz Firpo.
The animated story will go back in time to tell the story of John Wick before the first feature film, seeing the assassin completing the Impossible Task in a bid to free himself from his obligations to the High Table and gain the right to be with the love of his life, Helen.
The animated adventure was first discussed at CinemaCon 2025.
At the time, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson said: “In both animation and the world of John Wick, the possibilities are endless.
“There is no John Wick story fans are clamoring for more than the Impossible Task.
"Shannon’s take on that story is an incredible one, and we are beyond excited to see what John Wick can do in animation."
Meanwhile, in summer 2025, Chad Stahelski teased he has a "pretty good story" for John Wick: Chapter 5, despite the titular hitman's apparent death in John Wick: Chapter 4.
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter about continuing John Wick’s story after his supposed end, the filmmaker said: "I’m not going to lie to you, it’s a bit of a conundrum. Me and Mike Finch - the writer on 4 who’s also writing 5 - we’ve got a pretty good story that I think is cool. Once we have a 50-page book, and if we’re feeling it, we’ll sit with Keanu and shape this thing.
"Look, everybody seems to want it. It’s a matter of whether we crack it. We’re actively working on it. It’s just … is it going to be satisfying?"
Stahelski added that while Lionsgate wants John Wick: Chapter 5, the sequel isn’t locked in just yet.
He explained: "The studio would very much will it into existence, I’m sure, at some point. Look, they’ve been great and they’ve asked us to really try and we have a really good couple of ideas and we’re going to try."
The filmmaker added that even if John Wick: Chapter 5 ultimately doesn’t come to fruition, he and his creative team will likely discover plenty of other ideas that could be reworked for a spin-off in the process of developing the movie, such as the Ana de Armas-starring Ballerina.
Stahelski said: "If we go down the road of John Wick 5 and build this story and decide this isn’t right, there are probably going to be 10 other things we’ll discover that we’ll use for other things.
"It’s a great creative exercise. It’s being in the room riffing with people we love. That’s nothing but wins."
