Ballerina (2025)

The John Wick franchise has proven lucrative enough to spawn a franchise in its own right, and following John Wick: Chapter 4 (Chapter 4), now includes spin-off films. The first of these, Ballerina (full title From the World of John Wick: Ballerina), was released earlier this year and seeing a trailer for it was what got me started on going through the John Wick franchise in the first place. Now that I’ve circled back to it, I found it somewhat decent, but the timeline as presented in the movie makes its placement within its parent series confusing.

After her father is killed by a group of assassins, Eve Macarro (Victoria Comte) is taken in by the Ruska Roma, whom her father was connected with. 12 years later, during the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (Chapter 3), Eve (Ana de Armas) is training as both an assassin and a ballerina and has a brief run-in with John Wick (Keanu Reeves), who tells her she still has a choice to back out form his lifestyle before it’s too late. Two months later, after a successful first mission, Eve discovers her father’s killers were from the Cultists, a group who has had a truce with the Ruska Roma, and seeks revenge despite the Director’s (Anjelica Huston) orders.

On the outset, the film has some interesting worldbuilding ideas, expanding on whatever we see of the Ruska Roma in Chapter 3 as well as the ballerina seen in the background of that film. The hallmarks of other John Wick films are there as well, including some creative fight scenes (though the mild obsession with explosives veers a little into “meat balloon” territory) and a well-acted story, plus the first act is cleverly woven into Chapter 3’s events. However, while she’s not treated any differently from other assassin characters in the parent series, I didn’t find Eve to be as compelling a protagonist as John. While John’s revenge was fueled by the death of his dog, and said dog also had significant emotional weight behind it due to its relation to his late wife, Eve’s motivation didn’t hit as hard for me. Oddly, perhaps due to viewing proximity, Eve’s story made me think of the 2005 Daredevil spin-off Elektra, mainly due to their respective backstories sharing some similarities, though unlike that film, Ballerina has better writing.

 

Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas) is an assassin seeking revenge.

The plot itself isn’t bad all things considered, but my main issue with it comes from John Wick’s reappearance in the second half of the movie. His reason for being in the Cultist’s town is never really explained, which muddies the timelines and makes it difficult to pinpoint how exactly it lines up with Chapter 3. After my initial viewing, I learned of and watched a deleted scene that explains everything, including solidifying when exactly the second half takes place in relation to Chapter 3, making it confusing as to why this scene was cut. Knowing this, however, does not save the final cut.

As previously stated, however, Ballerina is still well-acted despite its storytelling faults. In addition to her acting ability as Eve, Ana de Armas also proves her physical abilities in the many fight scenes. Normas Reedus (The Walking Dead, Death Stranding), despite his limited screen time, is also well-acted in the role of assassin Daniel Pine. Returning actors put on great performances in their respective roles, including the late Lance Reddick reprising Charon in his final on-screen acting appearance.

While Ballerina does show that there is still more of the John Wick Cinematic Universe left to explore, its placement in the timeline was lost on the cutting room floor and can confuse those unaware. If you’re looking for some way to get more out of John Wick after Chapter 4, Ballerina isn’t the worst option, but not one I would highly recommend.