Len Wiseman hopes to establish Ballerina franchise
Len Wiseman would "love" to establish a 'Ballerina' franchise.
The 52-year-old director recently helmed the 'John Wick' spin-off movie, and Len has revealed that he'd love to continue working with Ana de Armas, who plays Eve Macarro, a ballerina who becomes an assassin, in the new film.
Asked about the character's long-term future, Len told The Hollywood Reporter: "I wanted this film to be the best that it could possibly be, but it's hard not to wonder.
"Often, when I am asked that, I'll say, 'No, I want to wait and see what happens.' And that's true to a point, but when you're developing something and you get so immersed in a character, you have to build out what their story is before and after the movie you're making. That's how you really understand the character, so that's always on my mind.
"The movie ends a bit ambiguously on purpose. Who's putting the contract out on her? I'd like to hear theories about where it goes. I definitely have my theory. I would love it if it were to continue, and I think it would surprise people where we would go with it. So we're just waiting for what the reaction is to this one, but yes, I totally have fantasy plans about where Eve would go."
Len has been a fan of Ana for years, and he's admitted to being wowed by her performance in 'No Time to Die', the 2021 James Bond film.
The director shared: "I would love to see that character show up again; it was just too brief.
"We had already gotten involved with Ana. I had Ana in mind for quite a while before that. I went and saw a private screening of 'No Time to Die', and that confirmed her casting even more."
Ana recently revealed that she's loved becoming part of the 'John Wick' franchise.
The 37-year-old actress told The Hollywood Reporter: "I love the character and I think we can go anywhere from where we left it."
Ana hailed Chad Stahelski, the director of the 'John Wick' movies, and Keanu Reeves - who plays the legendary hitman - for helping to establish the film franchise. And Ana is now excited to see what the future holds.
The actress - who worked with Keanu on 2015's 'Knock Knock' and 2016's 'Exposed' - said: "It's really cool. I really like this character and the story and the universe and everything that Chad and Keanu created with the 'John Wick' films, and now to be a part of it, it's really special."
Ana pushed herself to her physical limits in preparation for her role in 'Ballerina'.
She said: "Every day tested my limits, just endurance and the level of discipline and commitment and focus that you have to have to take on a movie like this is something that I had never done before, and especially for a long period of time."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
40 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Ana de Armas learns to ‘fight like a girl' in John Wick spin-off
FROM THE WORLD OF JOHN WICK: BALLERINA ★★ (MA) 125 minutes Rumours of a fifth John Wick film, with Keanu Reeves returning as the world's favourite globetrotting, puppy-loving assassin, remain just rumours for the moment. Meanwhile, Ballerina is being marketed as 'from the world of John Wick' meaning that the heroine Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas) is a graduate of the Ruska Roma assassin academy for young ladies, which was first seen in John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum decorously presenting itself to the world as a ballet school. Anjelica Huston returns as the school's stern, largely deskbound director, and Reeves has what amounts to an extended cameo as Wick, who eventually becomes Eve's reluctant mentor (if you're keeping track, the action takes place in between the third and fourth Wick films). This has its risks. If you want to watch a James Bond movie, it doesn't mean you want to watch a movie about some other charmingly lethal spy you've never heard of, while Bond stops by for 10 minutes or so to offer advice and support from a distance (nothing like this has ever happened in the past, at least not on the big screen – but we can't rule it out since Amazon now owns the rights to Bond). Not only does this risk diluting your original brand, but it also gives the impression that you don't believe your new story and character can stand on their own two feet. In the case of Ballerina, there's some reason for this anxiety. The Wick connection aside, what we're dealing with is a very standard revenge yarn, following Eve after graduation as she heads for Europe to seek out the sinister clan that killed her father (David Castaneda). Good action films have been based on slimmer premises, but none of it winds up being very satisfying, although there's no single reason why. The script is rather disjointed, failing to do much with either the ballerina premise or the backstory involving Eve's dad. The director Len Wiseman isn't incompetent, but makes no attempt to match the dazzling stunt work of the Wick films at their best. Nor is De Armas the equal of Reeves as an action star (a motif introduced early on involves Eve learning to 'fight like a girl,' but this, too, is exploited less interestingly than might be hoped). Despite all the impalings and bullets to the head, there is in the end a fatal softness to the whole enterprise: De Armas as Eve is too little the relentless force of nature, too much the worried ingenue, fronting up for her early missions with the look of a would-be entrepreneur applying for her first job at a publishing company.
The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
Ana de Armas learns to ‘fight like a girl' in John Wick spin-off
FROM THE WORLD OF JOHN WICK: BALLERINA ★★ (MA) 125 minutes Rumours of a fifth John Wick film, with Keanu Reeves returning as the world's favourite globetrotting, puppy-loving assassin, remain just rumours for the moment. Meanwhile, Ballerina is being marketed as 'from the world of John Wick' meaning that the heroine Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas) is a graduate of the Ruska Roma assassin academy for young ladies, which was first seen in John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum decorously presenting itself to the world as a ballet school. Anjelica Huston returns as the school's stern, largely deskbound director, and Reeves has what amounts to an extended cameo as Wick, who eventually becomes Eve's reluctant mentor (if you're keeping track, the action takes place in between the third and fourth Wick films). This has its risks. If you want to watch a James Bond movie, it doesn't mean you want to watch a movie about some other charmingly lethal spy you've never heard of, while Bond stops by for 10 minutes or so to offer advice and support from a distance (nothing like this has ever happened in the past, at least not on the big screen – but we can't rule it out since Amazon now owns the rights to Bond). Not only does this risk diluting your original brand, but it also gives the impression that you don't believe your new story and character can stand on their own two feet. In the case of Ballerina, there's some reason for this anxiety. The Wick connection aside, what we're dealing with is a very standard revenge yarn, following Eve after graduation as she heads for Europe to seek out the sinister clan that killed her father (David Castaneda). Good action films have been based on slimmer premises, but none of it winds up being very satisfying, although there's no single reason why. The script is rather disjointed, failing to do much with either the ballerina premise or the backstory involving Eve's dad. The director Len Wiseman isn't incompetent, but makes no attempt to match the dazzling stunt work of the Wick films at their best. Nor is De Armas the equal of Reeves as an action star (a motif introduced early on involves Eve learning to 'fight like a girl,' but this, too, is exploited less interestingly than might be hoped). Despite all the impalings and bullets to the head, there is in the end a fatal softness to the whole enterprise: De Armas as Eve is too little the relentless force of nature, too much the worried ingenue, fronting up for her early missions with the look of a would-be entrepreneur applying for her first job at a publishing company.
Perth Now
10 hours ago
- Perth Now
Mindy Kaling's 'superstitions' influence her acting career
Mindy Kaling's superstitions have stopped her from appearing in Never Have I Ever. The 45-year-old actress co-created the hit Netflix series, which is set in the San Fernando Valley in California, and Mindy has now revealed why she didn't cast herself in the show. Mindy - who previously co-created The Sex Lives of College Girls - told The Hollywood Reporter: "A show literally about an Indian American family in southern California, and if I wasn't on that - what's wrong with me? "I think there is a part of me that feels a little superstitious. I'm like, 'these seem to have gone well and I'm not in them so maybe I'll wait.'" Despite this, Mindy plans to return to acting soon. She shared: "I miss it. I would like to write or co-create a show for me to act in soon." Mindy would actually love to combine acting and directing in the coming years. She said: "I would love to do that again. "That's the thing that maybe in the next couple of years, when I launch a couple of other things that are earlier in the pipeline, that would be something that would be fun to do again." Mindy previously admitted that she feels most comfortable writing about "strivers and dorks". The Hollywood star is a huge fan of the X-rated drama series Euphoria - which stars the likes of Zendaya and Sydney Sweeney - but Mindy doubts she could write a similar type of TV show. Mindy - who recently co-created the sports comedy Running Point - told The Hollywood Reporter: "I love Euphoria' and I think [creator] Sam [Levinson] is like a genius. I think he has a lot to say about things like sex and drug use and addiction and those are incredibly interesting, but we don't have a ton of experience in that. "I watch that show on the edge of my seat, vicariously, but I feel like nerds lusting over guys is more what we feel comfortable writing about so that's why we do this. We write about strivers and dorks and people who are underestimated."
