The latest trailer for the John Wick spinoff Ballerina confirms that Keanu Reeves is truly playing the Baba Yaga for the first time since Chapter 2. It had already been confirmed that Reeves would return as Wick in From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, but the exact nature of his role in the story was kept a mystery. In fact, until recently, the Ballerina producers were still tampering with Reeves’ cameo in the cutting room and trying to figure out the right amount of screen time to give him.

It’s been well-established that Wick is a notorious contract killer with a spotless track record of murder-for-hire, but the John Wick movies don’t usually show that side of him. At the beginning of the first film, he’s retired from that line of work and he’s determined to stay retired. The franchise only ever showed Wick as a hired hitman in John Wick: Chapter 2, and the “real” Wick hasn’t been back since then. But now, yeah, I’m thinking he’s back.

John Wick Is A Hired Hitman Again In Ballerina

The Director Hires Wick To Go After Ana De Armas’ Eve

Set to be released in theaters on June 6, Ballerina is the first official spinoff movie in the John Wick universe. The film takes place between John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and John Wick: Chapter 4, and it stars Ana de Armas as Eve Macarro, a ballerina-turned-ᴀssᴀssin working with the Ruska Roma. Ballerina’s latest trailer has finally teased what Reeves’ role in the movie will entail. The Director — played by Anjelica Huston, reprising her role from Parabellum — hires Wick to take on Eve.

So, for the first time since Chapter 2, Wick is a hired hitman again. He’s got a job and a target, and it’ll be interesting to see how it shakes out. Usually, when Wick goes after someone, it means they’re doomed. But since Eve is the lead character of Ballerina, it’s unlikely that Wick will succeed in ᴀssᴀssinating her. Beating Wick at his own game would certainly be an effective way of establishing Eve as a formidable new antihero in this world.

John Wick’s Hitman Plot In Ballerina Is Very Different Than John Wick 2

This Time, He’s The Antagonist

Wick’s storyline in Ballerina will be very different than in Chapter 2. In both cases, he’s a hired ᴀssᴀssin hunting down a target, but the focus of each story is different. In Chapter 2, Wick was the protagonist, and we were still rooting for him despite the immoral task at hand. In Ballerina, he’s the antagonistic force going after the protagonist we’re following, so it’ll be a totally different perspective than we’re used to.