"This is not a female John Wick." So says director Len Wiseman at the start of the freshly dropped CCXP behind the scenes look at his upcoming actioner Ballerina, the latest off-shoot from the John Wick universe. But while that's certainly true — this movie is set to represent the introduction point for Ana De Armas' Eve Macarro, the Ruska Roma trained dancing assassin who'll be bringing a whole new meaning to the expression 'bullet ballet' in Lionsgate's hotly anticipated John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum and Chapter 4 midquel — it doesn't mean the ever-expanding JWU's latest lead is any less formidable than Keanu Reeves' Baba Yaga. Quite the opposite in fact.
Much of the emphasis here is on how Ballerina is set to expand the Wickiverse, with the likes of franchise godhead Chad Stahelski, director Wiseman, and the late, great Lance Reddick speaking to the depth of lore surrounding Wick's world and its rituals — and the way Ballerina offers the series a new creative outlet to explore. From our side of things however, this extended look at production on the movie — peppered generously with exciting new glimpses of De Armas kicking ass, the return of Reeves' Baba Yaga, and an insane looking flamethrower sequence ("I think I burn 106 people," coolly explains the film's lead) — really is a chance to see just how far the team behind and in front of the camera have gone to fill this thing wall-to-wall with the kind of incredible fight choreography and stuntwork the franchise's fanbase has come to expect. On present evidence, we're saying it looks like they've crushed it.
Also along for a slice of the action-packed pie in this one are Ian McShane's hotelier-for-hitmen Winston, Anjelica Huston's Ruska Roma alum Director, the aforementioned Reeves' John Wick and Reddick's concierge Charon, and newcomers to the franchise including Gabriel Byrne, Catalina Sandino Moreno, and Norman Reedus — the last of whom's reaction to seeing Reeves pop a clip on set is a real highlight from this new teaser trailer.