First Look At John Wick ‘The Continental’ Spin-off Shows A World Without Baba Yaga

With the John Wick movies built around Baba Yaga, the moniker of the titular assassin played by Keanu Reeves, it can be difficult to imagine his absence in the world. The Continental, Peacock’s upcoming prequel miniseries will do just that, as it explores a time without Wick and shifts the focus to Winston Scott, the character portrayed by Ian McShane in the films.

The first trailer offered an extended look at the 1970s New York setting and its characters, but one prominent figure was missing from the mix: Mel Gibson’s villainous Cormac. Courtesy of a first-look exclusive by IGN, there’s now a face to attach to the name, joining Colin Woodell’s portrayal of a younger Scott, described by executive producer Basil Iwanyk to be “a completely different person and different version of himself in the films”, Huber Point-Du Jour’s character of Miles, Jessica Allain’s Lou, and more.

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The Continental is coming to the streamer in September 2023, and serves to expand the Wick-verse alongside its feature spin-off counterpart Ballerina, fronted by Ana de Armas. Set roughly 40 years before the events in the Reeves-led film saga, it provides an origin story for Scott, and will span three 90-minute episodes. Charon, the Continental concierge played by the late Lance Reddick in the movies, is also poised to make an appearance in the show.

The official synopsis for the spin-off reads, “The three-part event will explore the origin behind the iconic hotel-for-assassins centerpiece of the John Wick universe through the eyes and actions of a young Winston Scott, as he’s dragged into the Hell-scape of 1970s New York City to face a past he thought he’d left behind. Winston charts a deadly course through the hotel’s mysterious underworld in a harrowing attempt to seize the hotel where he will eventually take his future throne.”