Yet, at the 11th hour, Lionsgate stepped in to secure the distribution rights to “John Wick.” The deal was finalized on August 11 — just over two months before the film was slated to hit theaters. Was that going to be enough time to launch an effective marketing campaign? Was that going to be enough time to build buzz for a movie from directors nobody had ever heard of, with a star whose best days in Hollywood were seemingly behind him? In this case, the movie Lionsgate acquired largely spoke for itself.
Fortunately, ditching the direct-to-video-sounding title “Scorn” in favor of the titular assassin’s name did some work in the lead-up to release to help it sound more Hollywood and less RedBox. It also didn’t hurt that buzz began building in a very real way, particularly after an electrifying screening at Fantastic Fest that convinced critics of the world that Keanu was back, and made the directors realize they had made a great movie. Lionsgate did its job, and they pulled this movie up by its bullet-riddled bootstraps.
Sure, sometimes a sequel can make more than its predecessor, but for each subsequent film in the franchise to pretty much double the film that came before? It’s straight-up incredible. What helped as well is that both “Chapter 2” and “Chapter 3” kept the budgets reigned in at $40 million a pop. Lionsgate is one of the best in the business at mid-budget hit-making, and this may be the crown jewel of the studio’s accomplishments in that department. Credit to them for saving this one from the depths of direct-to-video hell. Certainly, there is a lesson here in good business and looking for gold in overlooked cracks of the business.
As we are now enjoying “John Wick: Chapter 4” and looking down the barrel of an upcoming spin-off titled “Ballerina,” it is also worth looking at how Lionsgate built this into an unlikely franchise with patience. They didn’t jump the gun and try to build a cinematic universe. They didn’t overspend and under-deliver on quickly produced sequels. They built a world, and trusted the filmmakers to do that in the best way they saw fit. As a result, they have not only a hit franchise, but an enduring one that is part of the permanent lexicon of classics. “Ouija” may have been the bigger hit, but any studio in Hollywood would rather have “John Wick.”
Patience is a virtuous trait, as is being fiscally responsible. That patience and responsibility rewarded both Lionsgate and movie lovers around the world with one of the most satisfying modern franchises, brimming with seemingly endless possibilities. This is how you build a universe. This is the template for modern franchise filmmaking, and every single producer or money man in the business would do well to take note of how this little movie built itself up to a blockbuster franchise.
This content was originally published here.
