John Wick (character)

John Wick is a fictional character and the titular protagonist of the John Wick film series. He is portrayed by Keanu Reeves. John Wick is a legendary hitman who retired until a gang invades his house, steals his car, and kills the puppy his late wife Helen had given him. This sets him on a path of revenge, setting off a series of events that lead him to be hunted by a huge section of the criminal underworld whereas the name of the group leading the section of the criminal underworld that tried to kill John was the High Table.[1]

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 nameJardani Jovonovich (formerly)
Johnathan Wick
NicknamesBaba Yaga
The Boogeyman
GenderMale
Occupation
  • Professional Hitman (formerly)
  • Vigilante
Affiliation
Ruska Roma (formerly)
  • Tarasov crime syndicate (formerly)
  • The Continental (formerly)
  • The High Table (formerly)
Fighting style
SpouseHelen Wick (deceased)
Nationality

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 before being taken in by an old friend of his father, who would eventually become Wick's mentor.[2] It is revealed in the John Wick comic book mini-series that he spent a significant portion of his adolescence in El Sauzel, Mexico.[3] It is possible he served with the Marines,[4] eventually taking on the name "John Wick" . At one point, he was recruited by a Ruska Roma organized crime group and trained by its leader, a woman known as "the Director", in New York City. Under the Director's supervision, John was trained as a hitman and learned skills including martial arts, firearms and other weaponry, tactical driving, infiltration, escapology and more. After leaving the Ruska Roma organization, he was arrested for an unspecified crime and imprisoned.[5] Upon release, he was manipulated into joining the underground crime world operating out of the Continental Hotel chain.[6] John eventually became the top enforcer for the New York Russian crime syndicate, becoming a feared and ruthless hitman known for his great focus, determination, and sheer will. He was later nicknamed "Baba Yaga", being further described as the man one would send to "kill the Bogeyman". His prowess was such that he once single-handedly killed three men with a pencil.

Eventually John 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 Viggo Tarasov, boss of the Tarasov mob, who agreed to grant him his freedom if he could carry out what was described as "impossible task", implying that John was not expected to survive the mission. In order to accomplish his goal, John requested assistance from crime boss Santino D'Antonio and subsequently ended up owing him a blood oath called a "marker". Wick eliminated all Tarasov's major rivals, thus enabling him to become one of New York's most powerful crime bosses. John Wick retired and settled down with Helen, his reputation 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 remains isolated from society at large. He spends his days driving his prized 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 429, and caring for his new dog, a beagle named Daisy, the last gift from his dearly departed wife. When Iosef Tarasov, Viggo's son, breaks into his home and assaults John, steals his car and kills Daisy, this sends a vengeful John on a violent rampage. Knowing that John will likely stop at nothing to kill Iosef, Viggo attempts to protect his son and sends hitmen and henchmen to stop John, but all are killed by the ruthless Baba Yaga. John eventually has his revenge, killing both Iosef and Viggo. Afterwards, John rescues a pit-bull puppy scheduled to be euthanized from an animal shelter and returns home.

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, and forms a truce with him. John's hopes of returning to retirement are dashed by Camorra crime boss Santino D'Antonio, who demands he complete his blood oath and assassinate Santino's sister, Gianna D'Antonio, allowing him to take her place at The High Table. He refuses which causes Santino to destroy his house as a result. John reluctantly travels to Rome and fulfills the oath, only to realize that Santino is targeting him for killing Gianna. 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. John eventually finds Santino in the Continental, where no bloodshed is permitted. Despite the rule, John kills Santino, forcing Winston to declare him "excommunicado", meaning that John can no longer draw on the services and resources of the criminal underworld. Winston allows John one hour to escape before the excommunicado becomes active and the bounty on his head is doubled.[7]

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019)
See also: John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum

Excommunicated, exhausted, and injured, John prepares to flee from New York as assassins gather and learn of the $14 million bounty on his head. Escaping to Morocco using his former allegiances, John meets with Sofia, manager of the Moroccan Continental, who helps him find the Elder, the one man outranking the High Table. 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 fealty. He 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, receives the badly injured John in his hideout, where he tells John he plans to get revenge against the High Table and John agrees to join him.

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.[8][9] Wick's violent one-man crusade has been described as an extreme case of workplace revenge.[10] He is largely seen wearing dark colored, tailored suits outfitted with ballistic armor. He is a deadly combatant and proficient with handguns, rifles, knives, and various other forms of weaponry as well as with hand-to-hand fighting. He has a large tattoo on his back with a Latin phrase written across praying hands holding a cross that reads, "fortis Fortuna adiuvat".

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.[11]

In other media

John Wick appeared as a crossover skin in the battle royale game Fortnite.[12][13][14] This was the result of young children and teens mistaking Reeves for a skin, named The Reaper, in the game.[14] According to Republic World, the skin is one of the most popular in the game.[12]

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. Matadeen, Renaldo (May 15, 2019). "How the John Wick Comic Book Prequel Reveals His Secret History". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  4. Hollings, Alex (October 8, 2020). "Is John Wick Really a Marine? The Jury Is Still Out". Military.com. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  5. "John Wick Book of Rules Part One". Dynamite Entertainment.
  6. "John Wick Book of Rules Part Five". Dynamite Entertainment.
  7. 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.
  8. 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.
  9. Eisenberg, Eric (May 17, 2019). "John Wick Kill Count: All The Kills In All 3 Movies". CinemaBlend. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  10. Hutchinson, Sean (February 13, 2017). "John Wick Suffers Extreme Workplace Rage, Psychologist Says". Inverse. Retrieved July 20, 2019.
  11. Ide, Wendy (May 19, 2019). "John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum review - The Art of Action". The Guardian. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  12. 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.
  13. 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.
  14. 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.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.