Ballerina's cast includes a mix of familiar faces and newcomers alike, including Anjelica Huston, Norman Reedus, Gabriel Byrne, David Castañeda, Catalina Sandino Moreno, and the late Lance Reddick as Charon.

Now, Lionsgate releases the first trailer for From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, providing a first look at the action-packed new expansion of the John Wick universe. The trailer provides a first look at Eve's training and her adoption of the assassin lifestyle, teasing a bloody path of revenge as she takes down enemies in the signature franchise style. The trailer also provides a look at the return of Reeves, McShane, and Reddick, who will seemingly all guide Eve on her journey in different ways. Check out the trailer below:

What The Ballerina Trailer Means For The John Wick Franchise

How Big Is Keanu Reeves' Role In The Film?

Reeves' Wick seemingly died at the end of John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023), but Ballerina takes place between the third and fourth films in the franchise. Though Wick's appearance in the trailer is treated as a grand reveal, it has been confirmed that Reeves' return is more of a cameo than a ing role. As with Winston, the trailer suggests that Wick will serve as something of a mentor to Eve, or at least someone that she looks up to, since he went on a similar path of revenge to the one that she's currently on.

Crucial to any project in the John Wick universe is the action, and the Ballerina trailer provides some idea of what to expect in this regard. As the director of all four John Wick movies, Chad Stahelski has been a critical ingredient to the franchise's style of action. Though Stahelski doesn't direct Ballerina, he does serve as the creative overseer of the franchise, and the film did undergo some reshoots and additional photography that he was more heavily involved in, which could suggest that the action sequences will be up to franchise standards.

In addition to Ballerina, the John Wick franchise is set to further expand with a spinoff about Donnie Yen's Caine, and a TV show called Under the High Table.

The trailer also introduces some new figures into the franchise. Norman Reedus's Ballerina character, for example, is new to the franchise, and he will seemingly serve as an ally to Eve during her travels. Sharon Duncan-Brewster is another newcomer, and she looks to play an important role in the Ruska Roma as a trainer to new ballerina assassins. The trailer also teases that Eve will be facing off against a particularly dangerous, flamethrower-wielding assassin, though it's not clear who plays him.

Our Take On The Ballerina Trailer

Ana de Armas Has What It Takes

Though reviews for The Continental spinoff were somewhat mixed, with that show arguably failing to capture what makes the John Wick movies so great, Ballerina looks to have a lot more in common with the Reeves films. In of its action, characters, and general presentation, Ballerina looks and feels like a John Wick movie.

Reeves himself is a major reason for the franchise's success, and, after The Continental's poor reception, the spinoff will be a key indicator regarding whether it can continue to succeed without him. De Armas, from the trailer at least, certainly looks to have the makings of a strong assassin character, and she already has proven action hero chops after her memorable appearance in No Time to Die (2021). Hopefully, Ballerina has what it takes to be a worthwhile expansion of the hit franchise.

Source: Lionsgate