Prior to the box office boom of “John Wick: Chapter 2,” the film’s director and franchise mastermind Chad Stahelski said he and screenwriting partner Derek Kolstad had plans for a TV series. Those plans are still in motion, with the project in development at Lionsgate and a new title assigned to the prequel.

IndieWire has learned that the series is being developed under the name, “The Continental,” and Lionsgate is “very excited” about the series. In a separate interview, Stahelski said the focus was expected to be the “cool, Wick-ian, magical, and mysterious world” of the titular hotel.

“They’ve got a really good structure,” Stahelski said. “It’s very tied to the film [in that] it’s about the Continentals all over the world, how certain people come into that world, and what happens in relation to those people, which is cool. I think the world is very vast, and everything I’ve heard from it is very positive. […] It’s something that studio seems very, very intent on [making] and very, very behind.”

“John Wick: Chapter 2” was the first to delve into the worldwide reach of The Continental, a hotel chain that serves as a respite for assassins and an access point for resources specific to the job. No “business” is allowed on hotel grounds, and Wick (Keanu Reeves) faces repercussions for violating that rule heading into the upcoming third film.

“I like telling stories from my one character’s perspective,” Stahelski said. “Once you put that aside with the TV show, [you can] expand to all the different characters and follow them throughout their journey. You can be with the consigliere, concierge, the sommelier — you can be with all these different characters and walk through the world in different aspects; ones that I’m a little limited [from exploring] by staying with my lead guy.”

That being said, plans for the series include incorporating Wick into the story — and putting Reeves on-screen.

“I think he would make an appearance,” Stahelski said. “I think that’s part of his thing, [But the series] isn’t centered around John Wick.”

Lionsgate could not confirm Reeves’ role in the series at this time, nor say who is writing the show — Stahelski said he’s “a really good showrunner” — but the director wants to stay as involved as time allows, given that he’s directing the third “John Wick” as well as pursuing other feature film projects.

“Currently, I’d like to stay involved throughout the development stage and hopefully direct a couple of episodes,” he said to IndieWire

Stahelski and Reeves’ busy schedule also contributed to their other TV project — “Rain,” the limited series based on Barry Eisler’s novel — being put on the back-burner.

“I think ‘Rain’ is kind of on hold right now,” Stahelski said. “It deals with Keanu’s schedule. He’s a busy guy, and he’s in love with the ‘Wick’ franchise, so he wants to put his time and energy into that.

“For us and Keanu, [‘John Wick’] was a one-off,” he added. “That’s when we were developing ‘Rain,’ in between [Chapter 1 and Chapter 2], and then all of a sudden everybody wanted us to do No. 2, and No. 2 did really well. So now, he kind of had to choose where to put his time, and he’s kind of vested into ‘John Wick’ — at least for the series and No. 3 of ‘John Wick.’ And if he chooses to afterwards, there’s always ‘Rain.'”

Stahelski, though, remains very excited about shooting television.

“Look at ‘Battle of the Bastards,'” Stahelski said of the action-packed “Game of Thrones” episode. “As an action designer, I think that’s the best battle I’ve ever seen on TV. They did a great job, and they weren’t careless with their money. They planned it, they boarded it — you watch the behind-the-scenes, [it’s clear] the guys did everything right.”

“Granted, they’re the biggest budgeted show on TV right now, but could we do something interesting with ‘John Wick’ with what we have? Yeah. I’d like to give it a go and prove to the TV world that you can have feature action on a TV show. It would be a nice little feather in my cap, sure,” he said.

“John Wick: Chapter 2” is now available on Digital HD, 4K, Blu-ray, and DVD.

The John Wick franchise is heading for the small screen. Starz and Lionsgate are teaming to develop The Continental, a television series adaptation of the highly successful Lionsgate film franchise. The project was announced today during Starz’s portion of the TCA winter press tour.

The Continental will be set in the John Wick universe, focusing on the inner workings of the exclusive Continental Hotel which serves as a refuge for assassins.

Writer/producer Chris Collins (Sons of Anarchy, The Wire, The Man in the High Castle) will write the series and serve as showrunner. The team behind the film franchise will executive produce, including John Wick star Keanu Reeves, along with Thunder Road Pictures’ Basil Iwanyk (the John Wick film franchise, The Town, Sicario), Chad Stahelski (John Wick co-director and John Wick: Chapter 2 director), John Wick franchise screenwriter Derek Kolstad, along with Collins and David Leitch (John Wick co-director, Deadpool 2). Stahelski will direct the premiere episode.

Ties between the studio and premium cabler have strengthened following the acquisition of Starz by Lionsgate in late 2016. Starz has been mining Lionsgate’s film library for possible series adaptations, recently putting in development Ascendant, a drama TV series based on the Summit/Lionsgate Divergent movie franchise. Starz also ordered series The Rook from Lionsgate TV.

A series adaptation of the John Wick franchise had been eyed for some time, with Stahelski teasing months ago that there was strong interest and that Lionsgate was already in early development on the project.

Collins expands the universe in the series by focusing on the Continental Hotel and those who find refuge under its roof. Set in a hyper-real version of Los Angeles, the series maintains the urgency of the action along with the dry humor from the John Wick movies, producers say.

The Continental expands a franchise that has generated two hit films that have grossed nearly $300 million at the worldwide box office and a successful virtual reality mobile game.

“This series is truly unlike anything else on TV,” said Chris Albrecht, Starz president and CEO. “The Continental promises to include the thunderous fight sequences and intensely staged shootouts between professional assassins and their targets that fans have come to expect in the John Wick movie franchise as well as introducing some new, darkly compelling characters who inhabit this underground world.”

Starz retains all domestic multiplatform pay TV and SVOD rights to the series. Lionsgate retains all international and domestic distribution and home entertainment rights.

John Wick is the latest feature film to get the small-screen treatment.

Starz announced Friday at the Television Critics Association's winter press tour that it was developing The Continental, an ongoing drama series based on the John Wick film franchise starring Keanu Reeves. Reeves, Starz execs said, is expected to make an appearance in the potential series but will not star as the project exists side by side with the feature universe.

The potential TV series is set in the John Wick universe and focuses on the inner-workings of the exclusive Continental Hotel, which serves as a refuge for assassins.

Chris Collins (Sons of Anarchy, The Wire, Man in the High Castle) will pen the script and serve as showrunner should the drama move forward. The original film's creative team are on board the TV off-shoot, with Thunder Road Pictures' Basil Iwanyk — who produced the first two features and serves in the same capacity on the forthcoming third — leads an exec producing team that also includes Chad Stahelski (who directed the first two and is returning for the third), original franchise screenwriter Derek Kolstad and Collins, David Leitch (who co-directed the original) and Reeves. Stahelski will direct the premiere of The Continental, should the script move forward.

The Continental TV show, a spin-off from the John Wick franchise, has declared Ian McShane excommunicado. The actor, who so memorably plays Winston, the owner of the Continental hotel, won’t be appearing in the series. The actor confirmed that he may or may not lend his voice via voice over, but he won’t be popping-up in the show anytime soon.

A Continental TV show without Ian McShane sounds unthinkable, but that’s what’s happening. The upcoming John Wick spin-off series The Continental will not only be John Wick free, it will also be Winston free. Speaking with Rotten Tomatoes, McShane confirmed his urbane hotel owner is sitting this one out. “No,” McShane said in regards to appearing in the series. “But I may give ’em a voiceover. A series, no. They talked about that.”

McShane also added that his character is going to be in trouble in John Wick Chapter 3 for giving John Wick a head-start on his getaway: “Oh yeah, you know The High Table will be pissed off…The High Table are very pissed off, and they’re very angry.”

If The Continental was coming out right after the first John Wick film, the lack of McShane’s Winston might stick out more. But John Wick Chapter 2 revealed that there was more than one Continental – McShane’s Winston owns the New York location, but there are Continentals all over the world. With that in mind, it’s likely that the series will be focusing on a different Continental than the one we’re used to.

“They’ve got a really good structure. It’s very tied to the film [in that] it’s about the Continentals all over the world, how certain people come into that world, and what happens in relation to those people, which is cool,” John Wick franchise director Chad Stahelksi said of the series. “I think the world is very vast, and everything I’ve heard from it is very positive. It’s something that studio seems very, very intent on [making] and very, very behind.”

Stahelski also added that the series would tell stories from a different point of view:

“I like telling stories from my one character’s perspective. Once you put that aside with the TV show, [you can] expand to all the different characters and follow them throughout their journey. You can be with the consigliere, concierge, the sommelier — you can be with all these different characters and walk through the world in different aspects; ones that I’m a little limited [from exploring] by staying with my lead guy.”

The Continental TV series doesn’t have a premiere date yet, but John Wick Chapter 3 will open May 17, 2019.

The Continental, Starz’s TV series spinoff of Keanu Reeves’ feature franchise John Wick, is unlikely to air until at least late 2021.

When asked whether the TV remake — which will focus on the inner workings of the exclusive Continental Hotel that serves as a refuge for assassins — would launch before the fourth film debuts in May 2021, Starz COO Jeffrey Hirsch admitted that it was unlikely.

The Starz John Wick TV series The Continental is still on track to premiere sometime following the fourth movie, which is dated for May 21, 2021.

“I had a meeting on a season pitch for this yesterday. We like the group of writers, and we’re trying to get it in the right place so it doesn’t interfere with the motion picture. It will air sometime after the fourth movie,” said Starz President and CEO Jeffrey Hirsch today at TCA.

Back at summer’s TCA, Hirsch revealed that the series would explore the origin story of the hotel which serves as a refuge for assassins in the movies.

The series was picked up by the Lionsgate-backed broadcaster in January 2018, and comes from Lionsgate TV. It’s being written by Chris Collins who serves as showrunner. Other members of the team behind the film franchise that executive produce include Thunder Road Pictures’ Basil Iwanyk, Chad Stahelski, John Wick franchise screenwriter Derek Kolstad, along with Collins and David Leitch. Stahelski will direct the premiere episode.