John Wick: Chapter 4 is the longest film of the popular franchise to date, but director Chad Stahelski is defending the decision.
During a chat with Discussing Film, the director was prompted with a question about the reaction to the reveal of John Wick 4's 169-minute runtime. Before going further, Stahelski clarified that the film is actually 2 hours and 38 minutes with 10 to 12 minutes worth of credits because the fourth chapter was filmed in five different countries. The former stuntman-turned-director also shut down complaints and reactions about the runtime by saying, "These are the same people that will go and binge a whole season of television on a Sunday afternoon. I think myself and again, you have [Christopher] Nolan and [James] Cameron, like come on, really? Everybody goes out and watches three seasons of TV on a Sunday, or they will watch a whole five episodes of Game of Thrones at night. And because you're on your couch that makes it different?"
When the director was posed with the argument that long runtimes might prevent moviegoers from fully returning to theaters, Stahelski agreed with filmmaker James Cameron's stance that American audiences are simply uncomfortable with taking a bathroom break. The director said, "Yeah, but I also watch movies all over the world. Literally, I agree with Cameron saying Americans are the only ones that are uncomfortable with getting up and taking a bathroom break. 'I don't want to get up so I have to hold it and now it's way too long!' Like, just stand up. I got something for you, for anyone watching John Wick: Chapter 4, after the water scene in the club, I did that to make you want to go to the bathroom. That's a good time to go to the bathroom and come back, and you would be fine (laughs)."
The Longest John Wick Film So Far
The film's 2-hour and 49-minute runtime was revealed weeks ahead of the movie's release, and it did evoke a bit of a divisive response from some on social media. The previous film, John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, clocked in at 2 hours and 11 minutes while John Wick 2 comes in shorter at 2 hours and 2 minutes. John Wick, the 2014 entry that started it all, is the shortest of the bunch at a slim 96 minutes.
At the end of the day, Stahelski believes that audiences are getting the best edit of the film and that movie came in even longer before an hour of material was cut out. The director said, "The original cut [of John Wick: Chapter 4] was 3 hours and 45 minutes – we cut an hour out! But we feel the movie we released is the best version of itself. We tried a 2-hour and 15-minute version, a 2-hour and 20-minute version, and a 2-hour and 10-minute version. And I just thought the movie was terrible in all of those. It didn’t land right, it didn’t emotionally sit right with me – it just felt weird. In the final version, I feel like I’m good. I feel like I’m satisfied. I feel like I got the action in."
John Wick: Chapter 4 brings back Keanu Reeves as the titular former hitman as he uncovers a path to defeating The High Table. While on a quest to earn his freedom, Wick also has to face off against a brand-new enemy with powerful alliances from across the globe and forces that might just turn old friends into foes. In addition to Reeves, the film also stars Donnie Yen, Bill Skarsgard, Laurence Fishburne, Hiroyuki Sanada, Shamier Anderson, Scott Adkins, Ian McShane, Rina Sawayama and the late Lance Reddick.
John Wick: Chapter 4 is now playing in theaters nationwide.
Source: Discussing Film