Summary
- Director Charlotte Brändström finds similarities between the fantasy franchise Lord of the Rings and the modern fantasy franchise John Wick.
- Brändström emphasizes the importance of world-building and character development in both series.
- Fans of John Wick and Lord of the Rings can look forward to new spinoffs and upcoming releases set in the same universes.
Charlotte Brändström, director of the John Wick spinoff series The Continental and Lord of the Rings show The Rings of Power, defines the similarities between both franchises.
It may sound strange to compare an action saga with a medieval fantasy one, but like all great franchises, The Lord of the Rings and John Wick may have more in common than fans can see at first glance. The differences are evident. While The Lord of the Rings is an epic story set in a fantasy world full of monsters and fantastic creatures where a group of heroes must join forces to defeat evil, John Wick takes place in modern times, in the shadows of society, within the world of murderers and criminals.
But for Brändström, who had the opportunity to work on projects from both franchises, finding common ground was not difficult. In an exclusive interview with MovieWeb, the director explained the similarities between The Continental and The Rings of Power, the most recent spinoffs of both sagas:
“John Wick is a fantasy franchise. It’s a modern fantasy franchise. I even remember Chad [Stahelski] said in an interview that he loved John Wick because it was a modern-day Lord of the Rings. What I love about this kind of series is it is world-building. You build a parallel world and try to find the humanity and ground it. What I loved about Tolkien is that it is a lot about humanity and species and days of old mythology, but you identify with the characters. I felt that was very important in this series was to get into the characters.”
In the interview that Brändström refers to, director Chad Stahelski compared John Wick to The Lord of the Rings and Blade Runner, referring to the level of world building:
“You know, it’s a modern-day fantasy film. That is what we’ve tried to get, and hopefully, people get that. You have Blade Runner and sci-fi. You have Lord of the Rings as a period piece. So how do you do a modern-day fantasy? I don’t think a lot of people have tried that.”
Related: Lord of the Rings: Actors Almost Cast as Aragorn
The Future of John Wick and Lord of the Rings
Amazon Studios
After the enormous success of John Wick Chapter 4, fans of the saga are divided in opinion. While some would like a new adventure for Keanu Reeves’ character, others are satisfied with the outcome presented in the recent film. Fortunately, even if the original saga does not continue, they can continue enjoying other stories set in the same universe.
The Continental premieres its last episode on October 6, and although the series did not have the same impact as the films, it did present a new group of characters who could have a future in the franchise. Additionally, Ana de Armas will star in her own spinoff titled Ballerina, a film that follows a highly trained female assassin.
For their part, fans of Lord of the Rings will soon be able to enjoy the second season of The Rings of Power, which wrapped up filming earlier this year. But that’s not all, Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line Cinema will release the animated film The War of the Rohirrim in December 2024.
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