John Wick 4: Ending Explanation and Post-Credits Scene Analysis

On March 23, the action movie John Wick 4 with Keanu Reeves in the role of the unkillable (or not quite) John Wick was released in Russia. The new part of Chad Stahelski’s franchise received the most mysterious ending – with the ambiguous fate of an assassin and hints of a sequel. We analyze the new misadventures of John Wick and tell you what to expect in the new films of the universe. With spoilers!

What happened to John Wick, how he deceived the Marquis, what is the importance of Winston’s tattoo and will there be “John Wick 5”.

How John Wick deceived the Marquis

In the finale of John Wick 3, Winston (Ian McShane) regained his status as manager of the Continental Hotel for mercenaries, after which he tried to kill John Wick in order to resolve the conflict with the Clan Board. However, John survived.

By the beginning of the events of John Wick 4, the King of the Bowler (Laurence Fishburne) helped him recover so that the mercenary could engage in a decisive battle with the Clan Board. John wanted to get the opportunity to leave the criminal world and become a free man.

In a desperate attempt to gain freedom, John made his way to the Elder (George Georgiou), who stands above the Board. John killed the Elder after learning that he could not free him. Winston was responsible for the consequences of what happened.

A high-ranking member of the Clan Board, Marquis Vincent de Gramont (Bill Skarsgård), destroyed the Continental, stripped Winston of his position, and killed the concierge of the Charon Hotel (Lance Reddick, actor died on March 17).

Winston teamed up with John to help him gain his freedom, and at the same time take revenge on Vincent and restore the position. Winston informed John that he could challenge the Marquis to a duel and legally leave the underworld.

To do this, John had to return to his family – the criminal organization “Ruska Roma”. Vincent accepted the challenge, but forced the mercenary Cain (Donnie Yen) – a former friend of John – to duel with Baba Yaga instead of him, promising him and his daughter freedom. The fight took place in Paris.

In the first two rounds, John and Cain injured each other. In the third, John was much more seriously wounded. The Marquis decided to finish off John, so he took a gun and approached Wick, thereby finding himself at the scene of the duel and becoming its participant. However, John didn’t actually fire the shot, so Vincent got a bullet in the forehead from him.

Since John and Cain were shooting at the same time, it was easy not to notice that Wick didn’t shoot a third time. Perhaps John, Winston and the King planned to end the duel in this way – after all, Winston told John to “kill him” before the final round, clearly referring not to Cain, but to the Marquis.

Is John Wick dead?

After the duel, John and Cain were free. John asked Winston to take him home, after which he quietly seemed to die from his wounds. John was buried in New York, next to his wife. The bowler at John’s grave told Winston that he did not believe in Wick’s death.

The King also asked Winston whether John could go to heaven or hell. Winston avoided a direct answer, only said mysteriously: “Who knows?” The king laughed in response.

In the movie John Wick 4, no evidence was revealed that John survived. Officially, the hero died. However, the scene with Winston and the King hints that there is still a chance for John’s “resurrection”. Suddenly, Wick only lost consciousness, and Winston took the hero to safety and faked his death. Thus, John could start life from scratch, without fear that old enemies would find him.

The King’s laughter and Winston’s reluctance to talk about where John ended up after his death seem to suggest that Wick survived, and Bowler guessed it. Maybe Bowler was already aware of John’s fate. Or John really died, and the conversation between Winston and the King simply refers to the fact that Wick could not decide during his lifetime whether to believe in God and the devil or not.

What does Winston’s tattoo mean and why did he name John son?

Winston at John’s grave called the mercenary his son in Russian. In this scene, it was shown that Winston has a tattoo on his wrist in the form of a cross – the symbol of the Ruska Roma group. It seems that Winston is also or once was part of this syndicate.

It can be assumed that Winston is John’s father. In this case, Winston’s decision in John Wick 3 to kill John is even more shocking. More likely, however, is the theory that Winston, as a supposedly important person in the Rusca Roma group, treats John as a relative. And over the years of working together at Continental, they became friends and became friends.

Winston will return in the film “Ballerina” with Ana de Armas as the mercenary Rooney from the criminal organization of the Director (Anjelica Huston), the ballet school from “John Wick 3”. The spin-off may reveal new details about Winston.

Although most of the details about the hero’s past should be expected in the prequel series “Continental”, where there will be young Winston and Charon, played by Colin Woodell and Ayomide Adegun. They will tell the background of the “Continental”.

What was shown in the post-credits scene of the movie “John Wick 4”

After the murder of the Elder, John Wick was hunted. At the same time, Vincent sent for John and Cain – he threatened to harm the daughter of a mercenary if he refused to work for him. The Marquis de Gramont’s men tracked down John at the hotel of Shimazu Koji (Hiroyuki Sanada), an old friend of John’s. The concierge at the Shimazu Hotel is his daughter Akira (Rina Sawayama).

Shimazu refused to surrender John, so he and his men fought Cain and the Marquis’s men. John and Akira also took part in the battle. As a result, Akira was wounded, after which Cain killed Shimazu, although he did not want to do it until the last. Akira did not fight Cain.

The girl in her condition could not kill Cain, besides, she is not yet good enough to defeat an experienced killer. Akira left the hotel, and Cain promised her goodbye that he would wait for her. Later, Akira told John that if he didn’t kill Cain, she would.

In the post-credits scene, Cain was shown walking with flowers to his daughter, who was playing the violin outside. At the same time, Akira was heading towards him with a knife. How this meeting ended was not disclosed. Maybe Akira tried to kill Cain in the crowd. Cain is blind – but he could hear the girl attacking and join the battle. Or Akira continued to pursue Cain, then at the right moment to avenge the death of her father.

The resolution of the conflict between Akira and Cain can be shown in a possible “John Wick 5” or a new spin-off. If John survived, then he can play a decisive role in their confrontation. Suddenly, Akira and Cain will have to cooperate in a battle with a common enemy.

Why Mr. Nobody Killed John and Why Cain Helped Wick Climb the Stairs

John in the movie “John Wick 4” was pursued by many mercenaries. Among the hunters was the mysterious Mr. Nobody/Tracker (Shamir Anderson), who worked alongside the dog. To raise the stakes and get the opportunity to earn more money from John Wick, he protected the mercenary from other hunters and eventually convinced the Marquis de Gramont to promise a decent amount for the head of Baba Yaga.

The Marquis set mercenaries against Wick so that he would not get to the place of the fight by the appointed time. Chased John and Mr. Nobody with a dog. At one point, John almost killed Mr. Nobody, but he didn’t. John rescued a mercenary’s dog, who was almost shot by the Marquis’s man. Mr. Nobody, before hunting for John, studied his goal – as hinted at by the drawings with Wick in his diary.

Wick’s decision not to kill Mr. Nobody, but to save the dog convinced him that John needed help. Still, the dog is Mr. Nobody’s best friend. He decided that he owed John his life and the life of a dog. When John was almost killed on the stairs leading to the place of the duel, Mr. Nobody saved the mercenary – in a sense, he was “persuaded” by the dog, looking pityingly at the owner.

John and his rival Cain helped to overcome the stairs. Cain – like Mr. Nobody – adheres to the moral code of murderers, so he could not allow the Marquis to dishonestly get rid of his rival. In addition, Cain respects John and appreciates his former friendship with him. In addition, a duel with John would allow Cain to gain freedom and protect his daughter. If John had died before the duel, Cain would have remained a “prisoner” of the Clan Board.

Will there be a John Wick 5?

In 2020, it became known that Lionsgate was going to shoot John Wick 5, but the studio has not yet approved it. Keanu Reeves said in January 2023 that a fifth film is possible – but only if the fourth is successful. Director Chad Stahelski added in March that if there will be John Wick 5, it will not be soon – he and Reeves need to rest properly and discuss ideas for a sequel.

If “John Wick 5” happens, it may reveal that John isn’t really dead (meme yes_not_died_I_in_John_wick_4.zhpg). Or other heroes will be in the spotlight, although it will be more of a spin-off. Also, “John Wick 5” can focus on John’s past.

In any case, John Wick will return – we will see him in the film “Ballerina”, the action of which will unfold between the events of the films “John Wick 3” and “John Wick 4”. After “Ballerina” and “Continental”, Chad Stahelski can expand the universe with new spin-offs – for example, about Mr. Nobody, Akira and Cain.