Summary
Just as I was getting more worried aboutBallerina, Ana de Armas’John Wickmovie has finally erased my biggest concern. When it was first announced that Ana de Armas would be headlining the first-everJohn Wickspinoff, I was immediately excited about the potential for her to headline an action movie. The news came on the heels of her scene-stealing role inNo Time To Die, which offered a glimpse at how capable she could be in another action-heavy role. However, concerns aboutBallerinaonly grew the longer the movie went through development and encountered various difficulties.
What became especially problematic forBallerinawere the reports that the movie was not living up to expectations on the action front. TheJohn Wickmoviesare known for excellent hand-to-hand combat and the unique gun-fu style fights that Keanu Reeves has perfected. Once reports surfaced thatBallerinaneeded reshoots to add in more action, I started to become worried thatAna de Armas' action moviecould disappoint if it took Chad Stahelski stepping in to help fix current issues. While any story concerns might still exist, recent comments have calmed my nerves elsewhere.
Thankfully, Ana de Armas’ John Wick Movie Won’t Fall Into A Typical Spinoff Trap
It’s hard not to be cautiously excited about Ballerina, but the Ana de Armas John Wick film is on the right track to be better than most spin-offs.
Ballerina’s New Action Scenes Sound Like A John Wick Movie
The Reshoots Appear To Have Worked
The reason why I’m no longer worried aboutBallerina’s action scenes is because the new ones added in reshoots appear to have delivered. Norman Reedus was the first to tease the improvements that came with the new fight scenes by saying,“It was painful.“The realistic pain and exhaustion of fighting has become somethingJohn Wickmovies do better than most action franchises. Now,Norman Reedus’Ballerinaaction scene teasesuggests that this element will carry over into the spinoff.
My excitement forBallerina’s action scenes increased even more afterScreen Rant’s recent interview with David Castañeda. TheUmbrella Academystar was specifically brought in to be part of the reshoots.Castañeda confirmedBallerina’s stuntsare everything audiences would expect from theJohn Wickfranchise. He described them as"intricate"and mentioned that there are"a lot of one-takes.“ThepreviousJohn Wickmovies have incredibly detailed fight choreographyand typically include at least one memorable one-take fight.Ballerina’s new action scenes give the spinoff the same level of craftsmanship and execution, making them very exciting.
Ballerina’s Reshoots Clearly Benefited The Spinoff’s Action Scenes
Reshoots Aren’t Always Bad
Hearing a bit about howBallerina’s action scenes from the reshoots turned out is particularly encouraging. It is easy to jump to the negative sides of what reshoots mean for movies, which is primarily what happened when reports aboutBallerina’s delayand planned reshoots surfaced. I’ve seen how badly that can go wrong with major franchise films before, butthe reason for the additional photography on theJohn Wickspinoff came from a good place. Stahelski wanted to ensure thatBallerinadid not disappoint audiences on the action front and maintained the standards of the overall franchise.
Ballerina is currently scheduled to release in theaters on June 23, 2025
Instead of calling it quits after principal photography and trying to make the action scenes better in the edit,Ballerina’s reshoots made it possible to add entirely new stuntsand fight sequences. Considering reactions toBallerinafootage at CinemaConin 2024 were mostly positive when it came to the fight scenes, there now just appears to be more of them, and possibly even better ones.Ballerina’s original action scenes may have been good and well done, but adding more of them or improving existing ones is a great example of how reshoots can help a movie reach its full potential.
Ballerina Can Be A Worthy John Wick Spinoff If Its Action Scenes Work
IfBallerina’s action scenes are as great as those involved suggest, then I have full confidence in the film delivering on its initial excitement. There is plenty of pressure riding on Ana de Armas' movie as the firstJohn Wickspinoff. It has to be an event that audiences thoroughly enjoy and feel satisfied by the stunts if the franchise is going to continue to expand beyond Keanu Reeves' character. In many ways, how greatBallerinais andhow much I ultimately enjoy it will come down to the quality and quantity of the fight scenes.
That is why I was so worried thatBallerina’s fight scenes being weaker than theJohn Wickmovies could negatively impact the film. Reedus and Castañeda’s comments have helped erase that concern for now.Ballerinawill be more than worthy of being the franchise’s first spinoff movie, and Ana de Armas will be well suited to replace Keanu Reeves, if the action scenes ultimately deliver on this hype. Even if the main story or the new characters are weaker than in previous installments, at least the movie will be entertaining in its action.
