From the World of John Wick: Ballerina is the first John Wick spinoff movie, but it isn’t the last, which sets up a scary possibility for the franchise’s future based on Ballerina‘s box office. The John Wick franchise is attempting to expand beyond Keanu Reeves, with The Continental TV show and the Ballerina movie being the first in what Lionsgate hopes to be a successful series of spinoff projects.

Despite the spinoff being a critical success, Ballerina‘s box office was a big disappointment compared to the previous John Wick movies. The 2025 film only made $128.3 million against a budget of $90 million, meaning that Ballerina most likely did not make its money back thanks to marketing and distribution costs.

Since the first John Wick spinoff movie was a failure at the box office, Ballerina has raised some red flags for the franchise’s future. The next spinoff film is now in jeopardy, as if it suffers a similar fate as Ballerina, the upcoming movie could be in a lot of trouble.

John Wick’s Caine Spinoff Will Not Include Keanu Reeves

It’ll Have To Rely On Donnie Yen

A spinoff centered on Caine, a character who was introduced in John Wick: Chapter 4, is the next spinoff movie coming from the franchise. However, it has a big risk: Keanu Reeves won’t appear. Keanu Reeves’ John Wick appeared throughout Ballerina, with the character being heavily featured in the film’s marketing materials.

However, the Caine spinoff movie won’t be able to rely on Keanu Reeves’ starpower, with it instead having to merely rely on the John Wick franchise name. Donnie Yen is a major actor, especially in the world of action movies, so he may be able to carry a John Wick spinoff movie on his own. However, the film won’t be cushioned by the actual John Wick.

Keanu Reeves’ Caine Absence Is A Risky Move, Especially After Ballerina

Will It Succeed At The Box Office?

Ballerina was a big box office failure, and this was even with Keanu Reeves appearing throughout the marketing. So, not having that benefit could drag the Caine movie down even further. There are all kinds of theories as to why Ballerina was a box office disappointment, but the Caine movie doesn’t inherently address any of these issues, meaning that it could struggle as well.

One of the biggest theories is that general audiences just don’t care about the franchise anymore after John Wick: Chapter 4. John Wick dies at the end of the film, and with this seemingly like a pretty conclusive ending to his story, it is understandable why these spinoffs don’t appeal to many viewers.

However, good word of mouth could help the Caine movie succeed. Ballerina‘s marketing didn’t show how it stood out from the rest of the franchise, and the involvement of Keanu Reeves certainly didn’t help, so hopefully the Caine movie can learn from this.