Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for John Wick: Chapter Four.
John Wick: Chapter Four has a definitive ending for Keanu Reeves's exorbitant assassin when he is fatally wounded in a duel with former comrade Caine (Donnie Yen.) This may come as a surprise to audiences as the franchise continues to succeed to close the book on the hit character, especially when sequels continue to dominate pop culture. But the bold choice to give John Wick a proper ending makes for a much better, more complete movie.
While sequels are not new to movie culture they are becoming more and more dominant. As franchises grow with ever-expanding additions, it creates more empty movies. If the priority of any installment is just to build upon what came before and lead to what is to come, movies are no longer complete stories but instead just chapters in a never-ending book. With no end in sight it becomes harder and harder to create a sense of urgency which means the stakes of the story get lower. Filmmakers can only do so much to a character while still leaving way for more to come. This makes movies feel less and less substantive and more disposable since each one feels more and more like "what's next?" Thankfully, John Wick: Chapter 4 does not fall prey to these tendencies.
This Was Always the Plan
From the outset, it was decided this would be the fourth and final installment for John Wick. Director Chad Stahelski and Reeves felt the only reason to make the movie was for Wick to meet his end. With that in mind, this creates freedom for the filmmakers to put forward all the best ideas they have, and not hold back anything for a potential sequel. With Chapter 4, they go bigger, increasing the scale and scope. They start in the desert, and follow it up with Tokyo and Germany, before the epic final sequence spanning Paris' most famous locations. The film is also able to make decisions with impactful consequences, such as destroying the mainstay of the franchise The Continental in New York, and the vicious death of Charon the concierge. With bigger and bolder choices, the film is granted more weight. Nothing and no one feels safe, and the limits are pushed to the extreme in terms of what a John Wick movie can even pull off. It creates a story that is a culmination, which is satisfying after following a franchise for nine years.
Not only does the ending for John Work on an audience experience level, but it is also fitting for the character within the story. Chapter 4 is an epic blaze of glory that features John facing his biggest challenges yet. The amount of people he has to take on at once in quick succession is staggering and the fight sequences only get more and more creative, requiring John to use all his skills and abilities to get to his endpoint. Even more appropriately though, his end is not a cheap way to write off the character. Rather, he is bested by someone that is his equal (Yen's Caine) and earns his freedom from the High Table. Caine is also not trying to kill John for his own glory, but rather to protect the person he cares about most. This makes John's death more righteous than if it had just been a battle. With John's death, The Continental — and Winston's (Ian McShane) dominion of it — is restored, atoning for the results of his actions from the previous film. Not only does John Wick's death put his character at peace, but it returns the world of film to balance.
Let The Story Be Finished
The heart of the matter is this: do audiences want to see more? The success John Wick: Chapter 4 has had at the box office does indicate the franchise is popular now more than ever, which makes the idea of a sequel tempting for studios. But in order to have another film, the filmmakers would have to cheapen the story of Chapter 4, ruining the satisfaction of the film's ending. To reverse the decision made at the end of the film, suggesting John faked his death, only to fight off some other representative of the High Table would not have the same thrill of this installment. Director Chad Stahelski shot a more open-ended version and tested it for audiences, but the ending that made the final cut was much more beloved. It suggests that audiences are okay with John Wick being at peace and don't need to see the hero return.
While this won't be the last entry of the John Wick universe, this may be the end of the line for John, and that is exciting. Though the initial idea of this being the last John Wick film seems unpleasant, it would be much more disappointing if John Wick Chapter 5 had Reeves dawning the bulletproof suit once more. Chapter 4 creates a sense of finality and works hard to earn it, and make it a worthwhile journey. At the moment in time when franchises continue to diminishing returns, a franchise electing to end, and end on a high note feels novel. John Wick Chapter 4 did not have to be the last installment of the franchise, but doesn't it make for a better movie that it is?