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John Wick (character)

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John Wick
John Wick character
Keanu Reeves as John Wick in John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)
First appearanceJohn Wick (2014)
Created byDerek Kolstad
Portrayed byKeanu Reeves
In-universe information
Full nameJonathan Wick
NicknameBaba Yaga / The Boogeyman
GenderMale
TitleAssassin
Occupation
  • Hitman (formerly)
  • Vigilante
Fighting style
SpouseHelen Wick (deceased)
NationalitySoviet Union (formerly)
American

John Wick is the titular protagonist of the John Wick film series. He is portrayed by Keanu Reeves. The character of John Wick, originally named Jardani Jovonovich, is an assassin who has long retired, until a gang invades his house, steals his car and kills his dog, setting him on a near unstoppable path of revenge, after which a former associate (Santino D'Antonio) calls in a "marker" to have him fulfill an assassination leading to him being pursued by the entirety of the High Table of Assassins.[1]

Character biography

John Wick was born Jardani Jovonovich in Padhorje, Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union, to parents who were of Romani descent. He was orphaned at a young age for unknown reasons, before being taken in by an old friend of his father, who would eventually become Wick's mentor.[2] He was later recruited by a Ruska Roma organized crime outfit and raised by its leader, a woman known as "the Director", at its New York headquarters. Under the Director's supervision, Jovonovich was trained as an assassin; he learned multiple skills including martial arts, firearms, edged weapons, improvised weapons, tactical driving, infiltration, escapology and more.

At some point Jovonovich took the name "John Wick" and left the Ruska Roma organization, becoming a feared and ruthless hitman who would be nicknamed "Baba Yaga". Wick was noted for his great focus, determination and sheer will; his fighting prowess was such that he once single-handedly killed three men with a pencil.

Eventually John met and fell in love with a woman named Helen. Hoping to leave his past as a contract killer behind him and pursue a normal life, John met with crime boss Viggo Tarasov, who agreed to grant him his freedom if he could carry out a certain task for him. The exact nature of this task is unknown but it has been consistently described as "impossible" by various characters throughout the series, implying that John was not expected to survive the task. In order to accomplish his goal, John requested assistance from Camorra member Santino D'Antonio and subsequently ended up owing a blood debt to him. In the first film, Tarasov elaborates little on the mysterious task but states that "the bodies [John] buried" laid the foundations for what his criminal organization became, implying Wick eliminated all his major rivals, thus enabling Tarasov to become one of New York's most powerful crime bosses. After completing his "impossible task" John Wick retired as an assassin and settled down with his wife Helen, his reputation and status now legendary, and the two lived happily together for five years.

John Wick (2014)

See also: John Wick (film)

Following Helen's death from a terminal illness, John largely keeps to himself and remains isolated from society at large. He spends his days driving his prized 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1, and caring for his new dog, Daisy, a last gift from his dearly departed wife. This changes when Iosef Tarasov, Viggo's son, breaks into his home and assaults John, stealing his car and killing Daisy; this sends a vengeful John on a violent rampage. Knowing that John will likely kill Iosef no matter what, Viggo attempts to protect his son anyway and sends assassins and thugs to stop John, but all are killed. Eventually John takes his revenge, killing both Iosef and Viggo. Afterwards, a heavily injured John rescues a pitbull puppy scheduled to be euthanized from an animal shelter.

John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)

See also: John Wick: Chapter 2

After exacting his vengeance on the Tarasovs, John retrieves his prized car from Viggo's brother, Abram Tarasov, and forms a truce with him, allowing him to live. John's hopes of returning to retirement are dashed by Santino D'Antonio, who asks for him to complete his blood oath and assassinate Santino's sister, Gianna D'Antonio, allowing Santino to take her place at The High Table. Refusing at first, Wick reluctantly travels to Rome to fulfill the task after Santino destroys his house, only to realize that he will be Santino's next target for eliminating a member of The High Table. Santino sends his bodyguard Ares and Gianna's former bodyguard Cassian after Wick but both ultimately fail. Santino places a $7 million bounty on Wick's head, after which Wick enlists assistance from The Bowery King, who supplies him with a gun that carries only 7 bullets and information of Santino's location. John eventually finds Santino in the safe grounds of The Continental, where no bloodshed is permitted. Santino taunts John as the Continental's owner, Winston, advises John to walk away before he breaks the laws of The Continental. Despite this, John kills Santino anyway, forcing Winston to declare him "excommunicado" for conducting business on Continental grounds, meaning that John can no longer draw on the services and resources of the assassin underworld. Winston allows John one hour to escape before the excommunicado becomes active and the bounty on his head is doubled.[3]

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019)

See also: John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum

Excommunicated, exhausted, and injured, John spends his one-hour head start preparing to flee from New York, as assassins gather and hear word of the bounty on his head. Escaping to Morocco, John meets with former ally Sofia, who helps him find the Elder, the one man outranking the High Table, who can cancel the kill order. John travels throughout the desert to the point of collapse in order for The Elder to find him. The Elder agrees to rescind the excommunicado in return for killing Winston and serving the High Table for the remainder of his life; John severs his ring finger and offers his wedding ring to The Elder to prove his commitment. John returns to New York and is pursued by assassins until he reaches the safe haven of the Continental. John reunites with Winston but decides not to kill him. Instead John and the hotel's concierge Charon fight against the High Table and their enforcers. Successfully defeating waves of attackers, Winston and High Table representative The Adjudicator parley on the hotel roof. Ultimately, Winston shoots John to restore his standing with the High Table and John tumbles from the roof into the street. The Bowery King, recovering from grave wounds inflicted by The Adjudicator's assassin, has the badly injured John and brings him to his hideout, where he tells John he plans to fight against the High Table. He asks John if he is also "pissed off." John replies "Yeah."

Characterization

The character and franchise has been described as a "central boogeyman character who can’t be killed" and a "modern, action-oriented equivalent of '80s horror franchises", and reportedly has a kill count of 306, exceeding Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers combined.[4][5] Wick's violent one-man crusade has been described as an extreme case of workplace revenge.[6]

Reception

Since the franchise's inception, the character of John Wick and his development in subsequent sequels have been seen as a reinvigoration of Keanu Reeves's career. The films have a cult following and Reeves's portrayal of the character has been praised.[7]

In other media

John Wick appeared as a crossover skin in the battle royale game Fortnite.[8][9][10] This was the result of young children and teens mistaking Reeves for a skin, named The Reaper, in the game.[10] According to Republic World, the skin is one of the most popular in the game.[8]

References

  1. ^ Avella, Joe; Blake, Conner (August 13, 2019). "How Keanu Reeves learned to shoot guns for 'John Wick'". Insider. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  2. ^ Gottsegen, Will (May 20, 2019). "John Wick 3 Isn't Just About Fighting, It's About Fame and Fandom". Spin. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  3. ^ Alexander, Bryan (May 24, 2019). "'John Wick 4' underway, but don't expect a happy ending for Keanu Reeves". USA Today. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  4. ^ Squires, John (May 23, 2019). "In Just Three Movies, John Wick Has Killed More People Than Jason and Michael's Combined Total". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  5. ^ Eisenberg, Eric (May 17, 2019). "John Wick Kill Count: All The Kills In All 3 Movies". CinemaBlend. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  6. ^ Hutchinson, Sean (February 13, 2017). "John Wick Suffers Extreme Workplace Rage, Psychologist Says". Inverse. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  7. ^ Ide, Wendy (May 19, 2019). "John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum review - The Art of Action". The Guardian. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  8. ^ a b Ansari, Danish (2020-08-19). "Fortnite skins: List of the most popular outfits in the battle royale". Republic World. Archived from the original on 2020-09-03. Retrieved 2020-09-03.
  9. ^ Hernandez, Patricia (2019-05-17). "Fortnite's official John Wick skin has made things kinda awkward". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2019-05-17. Retrieved 2020-09-03.
  10. ^ a b Cuthbertson, Anthony (2019-06-12). "Keanu Reeves was called 'Fortnite guy' so much that he decided to make a John Wick Skin". www.independent.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2019-06-12. Retrieved 2020-09-03.
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