Summary:
- Ballerina follows a trained assassin carving her path in the criminal underworld of the John Wick universe.
- Ana de Armas plays a deadly yet vulnerable assassin whose story adds real weight to the franchise.
- The movie sheds light on the Ruska Roma and fills in key gaps in John Wick’s world.
John Wick’s franchise is brutal, mysterious, and stylish, and Ballerina bridges the transition into that universe without sacrificing its own identity. Under the direction and writing of Len Wiseman (Underworld) and starring Ana de Armas in a new and daring role, the movie doesn’t merely expand the franchise; it provides a new, emotional take on the assassins’ underworld that fans already adore. With Ballerina hitting theaters soon, here’s everything you need to know about the film.
Table of Contents
Ballerina’s Place in the John Wick Franchise: Timeline and Connections Explained
Taking place between John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and Chapter 4, Ballerina centers on Eve Macarro, a ballet-trained killer first glimpsed in Parabellum, and her story is one of a fierce odyssey of grief, revenge, and discovery, leading her back to the shadowy halls of the Ruska Roma, an organization previously glimpsed but now stepping into the role of primary antagonist.
One of the most clever things that Ballerina does is place itself in the already set events of the franchise in a tidy manner. As Ian McShane (Winston) stated, “I think that was clever, them to put it in there, because you’ve met the character before in Episode Three… If you’re going to expand the universe, that was very smart, not just to bring in a female assassin, but to bring in a character that you met before.”
Director Len Wiseman explained that there wasn’t exactly a strict framework to follow. “There’s no franchise bible per se,” he said, but he worked with John Wick creator Chad Stahelski and the Thunder Road Films crew to make something that would be authentic. “We’re not using any footage from John Wick: Chapter 3, but we’re seeing iconic sequences from a different perspective… when they start whispering, ‘Oh shit, is that where Ana was during this time?’ That’s the kind of stuff I really love.”
Surprisingly, John Wick himself was not part of the initial drafts. Producer Basil Iwanyk said, “We developed a lot of drafts without John in it… and then we decided, okay, let’s give it a shot… He’s like, this is pretty fucking cool.” When Keanu Reeves came on board, he asked for more action in his scenes so his presence would not be a cameo but something impactful.
Meet the Main Character, Eve Macarro: A New Kind of Assassin
Ana de Armas’s Eve is no female version of John Wick, she’s something else entirely. Unlike Wick, whose story begins with a recent, devastating loss, Eve’s pain is long-standing, buried deep in her past. “This character is going through so much pain… she just uses all that pain and frustration and the not knowing about her past… to seek revenge,” de Armas said.
Eve is more openly vulnerable, more emotionally raw, and perhaps more sympathetic. “She is someone who is desperate to get in and she’ll do anything it takes,” Iwanyk said. “You could tell she takes some joy out of the mayhem.” It is that mix of intensity and humanity that makes her interesting.
Also Read:
- John Wick Franchise Watch Order Guide: Chronologically and by Release Date
- The Black Phone 2: Trailer, Plot, Cast, and Everything We Know So Far
- Is John Wick Dead? 6 Reasons Why We Think He’s Not
She’s fierce and powerful… audiences are going to love her and root for her,” said Anjelica Huston, reprising her role as The Director. Norman Reedus, cast as mysterious Daniel Pine, had similar praise: “She is very serious and also very fun to be around.”
Where Does the Ballerina Movie Take Place?
Whereas Parabellum introduced us to the Ruska Roma influence, Ballerina plunges us right in the midst of it. Eve was trained here, and the film finally reveals what it takes to rise through their brutal hierarchy.
“You’ll see training in both ballet and brutal combat and ritualistic tattoo ceremonies,” Huston revealed. As the Director, she plays a character who is both regal and terrifying. “She’s a surrogate mother figure… she carries herself with grace, regality, and power… She’s a boss who calls the shots.”
Wiseman was particularly interested in peeling back the layers of this group. “What I really wanted to show is—what really does take place there?… What would it be like with somebody coming in from the beginning, which is what Ana’s character is,” he explained. Watching Eve’s initiation offers a revealing look into how these assassins are shaped.
Executive producer Erica Lee added, “We get to explore further the Ruska Roma and Eve’s backstory and this mysterious town where all these assassins live.”
Ballerina Cast: Familiar Faces and New Blood
Aside from Ana de Armas, Ballerina also sees some familiar faces return. Ian McShane is back as Winston and has a closer relationship with Eve than fans might anticipate. “My character’s known her character since she was a little girl… there’s a relationship from the beginning to the end of the film,” McShane said. That backstory was added later, after the reshoots, and adds emotional depth to the story.
Norman Reedus is also featured in the franchise for the first time as Daniel Pine, a complex new character. “He has both sides of the coin to him; he can be fierce and soft at the same time,” Reedus said. His character, in particular, is a perfect fit in the John Wick universe, where assassins exist in the in-between spaces of protector and destroyer. “Norman Reedus is someone we’ve been dying to get into the Wick franchise,” producer Erica Lee said. “It would be great to have more of him for sure.”
Reedus himself is more than game to return. “I’d come back in a heartbeat!”
Final Thoughts
Although the action may feel more personal, it remains just as intense, with flamethrowers, grenade battles, and intricately choreographed combat scenes.
It maintains the franchise’s signature aesthetic, viewed through a more elegant, balletic lens. Len Wiseman wanted to create the same level of spectacle as the previous Wick films but with a different emotional core. Ballerina doesn’t just expand the world of John Wick, it adds depth and a fresh point of view.
Ballerina arrives in theaters on 6 June, 2025. Meanwhile, you can freshen up your memory about the John Wick franchise by watching its previous movies to understand this one without missing out on anything.
