Earlier than Keanu Reeves grew out his hair and beard to turn into the motion film icon we now know as John Wick, one other beloved motion star was in-line to play the position of the dog-loving murderer. And he would undoubtedly not have had the identical luscious locks. In an interview with THR for the tenth anniversary of the primary John Wick film, co-director and producer David Leitch revealed that none apart from Die Exhausting star and Hollywood icon Bruce Willis was on board because the titular murderer.
Leitch, who has since gone on to helm such motion film fare as Deadpool 2, Bullet Practice, and The Fall Man, provided some intriguing perception into how the primary film was developed, with Willis being connected early on.
“We have been first uncovered to the script by our supervisor on the time, Kelly McCormick, who’s now my spouse and producer. She had launched us to Basil Iwanyk and Peter Lawson at Basil’s firm [Thunder Road] to possibly do second unit work on that script. In order that was the primary time we learn it, and I feel Bruce Willis would possibly’ve been connected at the moment.”
Initially, John Wick was really titled Scorn (Keanu Reeves put an finish to that after continuously calling the film John Wick whereas doing the press circuit) and was about an older murderer who finds himself embarking on a bloody and brutal revenge mission. Willis is almost 10 years older than Reeves, with The Matrix star famously slicing a a lot youthful determine than his 60 years, with this casting revelation conjuring a barely completely different picture of each the titular motion hero and the film round him.
John Wick Led by Bruce Willis Would Have Been a Totally different Beast
Fairly than being about an aged murderer previous his prime, John Wick as an alternative grew to become a couple of former hitman who remains to be very a lot a grasp of the artwork of killing. One thing which is mirrored in among the different modifications that have been made to the film as soon as Keanu Reeves got here aboard. As per THR, David Leitch and Chad Stahelski put collectively a pitch for John Wick following Reeves’ casting, “turning the puppy-revenge story’s 11 to fifteen kills into 84 kills, in addition to underscoring the mythological element of the murderer underworld.”
Associated
John Wick Chapter 4 Is the Finish Based on One Creator however Not Others
Nevertheless, David Leitch and Erica Lee produce other ideas about the way forward for the John Wick franchise with Keanu Reeves.
It’s now fairly exhausting to think about anybody apart from Keanu Reeves taking part in John Wick however, in case you squint, it is best to be capable to see a stable motion outing led by Bruce Willis as a quieter killer (suppose Willis in Rian Johnson’s 2012 sci-fi outing Looper) in a extra insular revenge outing titled Scorn. The collaboration of Leitch, Stahelski, and Willis would nonetheless have little doubt resulted in cinematic brilliance, giving the actor and his followers one other thrilling motion film to look again on following Willis’ latest retirement.
After all, Reeves is now synonymous with the character, and John Wick is now one of the crucial profitable motion franchises of all time. Whereas the principle storyline not too long ago wrapped up with John Wick: Chapter 4, issues are set to broaden exponentially, with an anime collection, a TV present, and a number of other spin-offs now within the works. The primary official spin-off, From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, is coming subsequent yr, and finds Ana de Armas main the battle as a fledgling murderer who embarks on her personal quest for revenge.
- Launch Date
- October 22, 2014
- Runtime
- 96
- Studio
- Summit Leisure
- Tagline
- Do not set him off.
- Franchise
- John Wick