We are fans of John Wick, at least enough to watch Ballerina (2025) (though not the TV Continental show). Besides, I like action films led by women enough to watch anyway, even if there weren't much crossover with the Wickiverse.
It starts with assassin David Castaneda and his daughter being attacked in their swanky house. While she hides, Gabriel Byrne holds a gun to Castanedas head to flush her out. She creates a distraction, and they break out. Castaneda is shot, but she gets away. She is soon picked up by Ian McShane, who takes her to the her family, the Rusk Roma, headed by Angelica Huston.
Huston puts the girl into ballerina school, as well as assassin school. and she grows up to be Ana de Armas. She goes on a few missions - assassinations and bodyguarding - and on one she notices a mark like the one the people who offed her father wore. Huston lets her know that these people are part of a rogue cult. They don't just kill for money, they do it for sport. And Byrne is their leader. But they have a truce with the Ruska Roma. Neither will interfere with each other's business. Like the truce at the Continental, this rule exists to be broken.
She also meets up with an assassin for the cult who looks a lot like her (Catalina Sandino Moreno).
Of course, it all ends up with Armas against the cult. She gets some help from Moreno (guess who she turns out to be) and even John Wick. But even if she wins, she has broken the truce and will be hunted by both the cult and the Ruska Roma.
Without the Wick connection, I would say this is only a fair female-lead action movie. De Armas is taught early on that to defeat male opponents, she must force them to confront her on her terms, not theirs. This seems to mean either a kick in the nuts, or her just going a little bit crazier then them. Which culminates by the end in an almost silly flamethrower fight. Other than that we don't really see what makes her a great fighter. And I don't think de Armas has the martial arts chops that Reeves has to pull it off.
As a Wick spinoff, we get a bit of Ian McShane and a last scene from Lance Reddick (RIP), as well as plenty of Huston. Even Keanu has more than a few cameos. Add these together, and we found it a decent watch. But I don't think the spin-off will spawn a franchise.
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