‘John Wick 4’ Has Biggest Opening in Franchise History

Consequences.

It’s rare that a franchise gets better with each installment — or that a franchise keeps making more and more money as it goes on. Both are arguably true in the case of John Wick: Chapter 4, the great action franchise of our era. And it’s inarguably true that the latest film, John Wick: Chapter 4, had the biggest opening weekend of any film in the series so far.

Debuting in about 3,800 theaters last weekend, the movie grossed a whopping $73.5 million. That easily beats the opening weekend of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, which opened with $56.8 million in ticket sales back in 2019. Here was the full top five at the domestic box office last weekend:

1. John Wick: Chapter 4 – $73.5 million
2. Creed III – $10.4 million
3. Shazam! Fury of the Gods – $9.7 million
4. Scream VI – $8.4 million
5. 65 – $3.2 million

It’s worth noting that Creed III has been out several weeks longer than Shazam! Fury of the Gods, and yet it’s holding up far better in theaters; it dropped just 32 percent from the prior weekend and held on to second place on the box office chart, while Shazam! dropped almost 68 percent and slipped to third place. After 10 days in theaters, the DC sequel has grossed $46.3 million. The original Shazam! made $53.5 million in theaters in its opening weekend alone. That is … not ideal.

READ MORE: How John Wick Pulled Off Its Best Action Scene

As for John Wick, the big question now is … what’s next? Without spoiling too much of the film, its conclusion does not exactly leave a huge question that can be answered in a John Wick: Chapter 5. (John Wick: Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 very much felt like “chapters,” with cliffhanger endings demanding further resolution.) But with these sorts of box office numbers, Lionsgate will almost certainly want another movie anyway. It then becomes a matter of seeing whether Keanu Reeves and director Chad Stahelski can be convinced to make it.

Whether they sign on for a Chapter 5 or not, there will be a John Wick spinoff, dubbed Ballerina and starring Ana de Armas. Shot late last year, it should be coming to theaters within the next year or so; Reeves does at least have a small role as John Wick in it.