8 Big Clues John Wick Is Still Alive After Chapter 4's Shock Ending (2024)

The end of John Wick: Chapter 4 leaves fans wondering, "Is John Wick dead," since some clues hint that he survived. The sequel continues to follow John (Keanu Reeves) on his journey to return to his normal, non-assassin life, but the increasing price on his head makes that difficult. The movie is full of groundbreaking action sequences, but it's also surprisingly emotional, as John is seemingly killed in a duel with Caine (Donnie Yen). The assassin shares his final words with his old friend Winston (Ian McShane), then is buried in New York with a headstone reading, "Loving Husband."

The John Wick movies have grown in popularity since the first film's modest box office success in 2014. Three movies later, John Wick has become a billion-dollar franchise. John Wick: Chapter 4 made over $432 million alone — a huge achievement for Lionsgate, but it calls into question why the studio would kill off the character at the highest point of the series' popularity. It's a bold move, but in an industry where franchises never die if they're still popular, there are a lot of reasons to hold out hope that John Wick survived and will return.

8 John Wick's Burial Isn't Shown

Off-Screen Deaths Are Always Suspicious

While John Wick supposedly dies in a duel with Caine, as he keels over on the steps in Paris, the movie doesn't actually show him die. Not only that but, while Winston and the Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne) are standing at his grave in the cemetery at the end of John Wick: Chapter 4, there isn't a proper burial in the movie.

It's unlikely that the day Winston and the Bowery King visit the cemetery is John's burial, as the grass is uncut, and it's as if John has been buried for months. With action movies, if a character dies off-screen, the chances are high that they're probably not dead. Having the film end with a scene of his grave feels purposeful, as if the movie is letting the audience know that the world thinks John is dead, thus giving him the escape he was seeking.

7 John Wick 5 Discussions Are Already Happening

The Franchise Has A Long Future Ahead

It seems as if nobody is on the same page about John Wick 5, as director Chad Stahelski seemingly doesn't want to make another movie, and Keanu Reeves has yet to properly comment on the sequel, but Lionsgate has outright confirmed it. The studio hasn't verified whether John Wick: Chapter 5 is a prequel, which could very well be the case and keep the emotional John Wick: Chapter 4 ending intact.

However, the movie will most likely be a sequel and follow on from John Wick: Chapter 4, and it'll probably reveal how John Wick survived. Nevertheless, while it has been confirmed, Reeves' silence on the sequel speaks volumes. This is an issue with big franchises that want to leave audiences with a cliffhanger only for it to be undercut by the studio eagerly teasing more projects to come. This is similar to Spider-Man: Far From Home being announced before audiences knew that Spider-Man would be brought back to life in Avengers: Endgame.

6 John Wick: Chapter 4 Cut A Scene Confirming John Survived

There Was Apparently A Different Plan Originally

Director Chad Stahelski revealed that John Wick: Chapter 4 originally featured an alternate ending where John Wick survived, but the scene tested badly during test screenings. As a result, Stahelski made the brave decision to remove it, making the prospect of John Wick 5 much harder for Lionsgate. Despite that, the fact that the filmmakers had the plan that John was going to survive in the end suggests makes it more likely they have not closed the door on the character's future.

Stahelski is working on a director's cut of John Wick: Chapter 4, and it's possible that he could include the cut scene of John surviving. That would significantly help John Wick 5 avoid its biggest problem. I Am Legend 2 is following on from the first movie's alternate ending, and audiences could see the same happen with the John Wick franchise.

5 Winston & The Bowery King Are Powerful Enough To Fake John's Death

John Has Very Capable Allies

Between Winston and the Bowery King, they have more than enough power to fake John's death in John Wick: Chapter 4. The Bowery King alone has so many resources and connections that he can get his hands on weaponry, vehicles, and bulletproof suits across the world, and even managed to sneak an injured John back to the safety of the underground after he was left for dead in John Wick 3.

In that respect, there's no denying that he could have helped John fake his death. However, one thing that undermines this clue is that the Bowery King and Winston expressed genuine sadness when they were standing at John's grave at the end of John Wick: Chapter 4. Of course, they also show doubt that he is really dead. It is likely only one of them had a role in faking John's death and the coyness between them is these two secretive men trying to keep the truth hidden.

4 The Dog In John Wick: Chapter 4 Sees Something In The Cemetery

The Dog May Have Sensed His Human

During the cemetery scene in John Wick: Chapter 4, Winston and the Bowery King aren't alone at John's tombstone. John's trusty pit bull is there, too. During the scene, the dog's ears perk up, and he looks to the side as if he notices somebody in the distance, or maybe he smells his master's scent. Given that dogs in the John Wick franchise are extremely clever and skilled, it wouldn't be surprising if the pit bull sensed John somewhere.

After all, this is the same dog who found John in the Bowery King's lair after he was left in a New York taxicab in John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum. As good as the dog actors in this franchise are, it is possible the canine simply got distracted by something happening on the busy movie set off camera. However, if it was meant to be a clue, it is a clever one and impressive that the filmmakers showed restraint in not calling too much attention to it.

3 John Wick Has Survived Much Worse

It Likely Takes A Lot To Kill John

During the duel with Caine, John is shot three times with two of those shots being non-life-threatening and only one hitting him in his torso. It's hard to believe that one bullet killed John Wick when it wasn't even a head shot, especially given all the injuries he has sustained and the beatings he has endured.

Throughout all four John Wick movies, John has sustained over 200 injuries, including getting stabbed multiple times, being thrown through windows, and falling from such great heights on countless occasions. Outside the ending of John Wick: Chapter 4, John has only been shot cleanly once, but thanks to the doctor in John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, that was taken care of.

There's no reason why John couldn't have been rushed to that same doctor after the duel. There is a sense that John may have simply accepted that this was a fitting time to stop fighting, but he also may have taken the opportunity to convince the world that this latest injury was fatal when it was really just one of many.

2 Several Of John's Allies Weren't At The Cemetery

Other Mourners Should've Been There

Whether it's John's burial or funeral at the end of John Wick: Chapter 4, it's strange that Winston and the Bowery King were the only two characters to pay their respects. While John has made a lot of enemies, he still has several allies. Garage owner Aurelio and police officer Jimmy should both have been at the cemetery. The movie also made it clear that Caine and John Wick knew each other for a long time and were close, so it doesn't make sense that Caine wasn't there either.

All the people in attendance at Helen's funeral in the first John Wick movie would surely have known John, too. One wrinkle in this clue is that if all of these friends of John's didn't show up to his funeral because they know he isn't really dead, then it means his fake death is a poorly kept secret. It is more fitting to think they didn't show up because they simply didn't believe that John Wick could be killed.

1 Marquis Vincent De Gramont's Words In John Wick: Chapter 4 Were Literal

A Fake Death Could've Been John's Only Escape

In John Wick: Chapter 4, Marquis Vincent de Gramont says, "John is nothing but a ghost searching for a graveyard." That line of dialogue clearly implied that the Marquis believed that John was inevitably going to get killed sooner or later. However, that dialogue could also have been a hint to audiences that this was John's plan all along. Throughout the movie, John could have been planning to fake his death and that he wanted to have a burial so that the High Table believed he was dead and assassins stopped hunting him.

The Marquis's comment could have been a clever foreshadowing of John Wick's return. Indeed, this is also hinted at in another line of dialogue in the first scene of the movie when The Elder tells John, "the only way John Wick will ever have freedom or peace, now or ever, is in death." It is possible this gave the idea to John to escape this life by making the world think he was dead.

What We Know About John Wick's Future

Despite the titular character seemingly being killed in the last movie, the John Wick franchise continues to grow into the future. As mentioned, John Wick 5 is in the works even if it is unclear what role Keanu Reeves will play in bringing the character back. The latest news on the sequel is that there is a script being written and it is likely the key players will decide from there if the story is worth bringing this iconic character "back from the dead."

A spinoff series, Ballerina, will take a look at the underground world of the ballerinas, which was introduced in John Wick 3 as a new faction of this criminal world. Ana de Armas will take on the lead role in the movie, but it has been confirmed that Reeves will make an appearance in the movie, along with other franchise veterans, like Ian McShane and the late Lance Reddick. With Reddick's Charon having died in John Wick 4, it seems confirmed the movie takes place sometime before then.

The third and final movie that is confirmed to be in development within the franchise at this time is a spinoff about Donnie Yen's character of Caine. The film is said to be linked to the post-credit scene of John Wick 4 in which Akira (Rina Sawayama) seeks revenge on Caine for the death of her father. While each of these movies prove the franchise has a bright future, none of them offer a definitive answer about whether John Wick is alive or dead.

John Wick

Created by

Derek Kolstad

First Film

John Wick

Cast

Keanu Reeves , Ian McShane , Lance Reddick , Willem Dafoe , Michael Nyqvist , Alfie Allen , Laurence Fishburne , Anjelica Huston , Bill Skarsgard , Mel Gibson , Donnie Yen

TV Show(s)

The Continental