John Wick: Chapter 4 stars a number of incredible action movie stars and martial arts experts, including the legendary Donnie Yen. In the film, Yen plays Caine, a blind assassin who was a longtime ally of John Wick (Keanu Reeves) but is forced to become his adversary. In a new behind-the-scenes featurette, from the film’s physical release, Yen and director Chad Stahelski discuss how Caine evolved to become the “complex character” that we see in the high-energy action flick. Check it out above!
In John Wick: Chapter 4, Reeves’ globe-trotting assassin finds himself exiled and seeking retribution against the High Table. However, his enemies have sent the Marquis Vincent Bisset de Gramont (Bill Skarsgård) who commands an army of assassins for the High Table. The film was written by Shay Hatten and Michael Finch, as based on characters created by Derek Kolstad. Additional stars of the film include Laurence Fishburne, Hiroyuki Sanada, Shamier Anderson, Rina Sawayama, Scott Adkins, Clancy Brown, Ian McShane, Marko Zaror, and the late Lance Reddick. John Wick: Chapter 4 is now available on Digital and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD.
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Recently, PopCulture.com had a chance to chat with Zaror — who portrays High Table mercenary Chidi — about his work on the film and what it was like to work with Stahelski. “Man, it’s a high demand, high everything,” he said of the John Wick film set. “When you think you got it good, then he’s going to ask you for a little bit better. He knows exactly what he wants, so you need to give it 200% all the time. The good thing is that you know that when he says I got it, it is because it’s perfection.”
Explaining why this makes Stahelski such an effective director, Zaror said, “He’s been there. He was a stuntman. He is a fight coordinator. He’s an amazing martial artist. So, as a martial artist, when you have a martial artist, a real martial artist behind the camera, it is a very big difference.”
He went on to add, “Because a martial artist, besides directing the movie, you are also analyzing each technique and a martial arts technique, for the fans of martial arts, we know what a kick’s supposed to look like, what it’s supposed to sound like, and the impact and the damage that should supposed to be, what it feels real, what it doesn’t, if it feels good contact or not, those little details, right? You as a martial artist know, but when you are not, then you don’t. It’s hard to feel that, to understand that if you’re not a true martial artist.”
