Movie Review: From the World of John Wick: Ballerina

Few may have imagined that the 2014 film John Wick would eventually prove so popular that it would spawn three sequels (to date at least) and now, a spinoff entitled From the World of John Wick: Ballerina. But, that changed when the first film went on to earn a worldwide gross of $86.1 million. Subsequently, three sequels saw the franchise take in over one billion dollars worldwide so the probability of a spinoff series appearing seemed inevitable. What is a pleasure to report is just how entertaining Ballerina ends up being.

Set during the period depicted in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019), Ballerina centers on the character of Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas) as she begins training in the ways of the assassin before going out on her first mission to become one of the stable of assassins overseen by The Director (Anjelica Huston).

Once on that mission, to locate rogue assassin Pine (Norman Reedus) and dispatch him, Eve learns that Pine is on the run with his daughter Ella (Ava Joyce McCarthy) from their rival assassin clan led by The Chancellor (Gabriel Byrne) who happens to be Ella’s grandfather. Much like the character of John Wick himself, Eve undergoes a crisis of character when the job veers towards the killing of an innocent and instead sets about doing the “right” thing instead of the “contracted” thing.

Director Len Wiseman, whose last feature was the regrettable remake of Total Recall (2012), harkens back to his work on the “Underworld” series (directing Underworld in 2003 an Underworld: Evolution in 2006) to deliver a strong heroine at the helm of a seemingly non-stop action extravaganza.

Ana de Armas in “From the World of John Wick: Ballerina.” Photo by Murray Close/Lionsgate/Murray Close/Lionsgate – © 2025 Lionsgate.

Working from a solid script written by Shay Hatten, who also penned John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023), Wiseman lets the lore of the story carry the narrative for the most part while delivering some exquisitely shot action sequences. That is to say, there is a straight-forward mission that Eve embarks on and that quest – if you will – is never forgotten along the way. Like the first John Wick, this is a tale of someone finding their humanity and nobility while redeeming themselves as well.

The film retains the look and feel of previous films in the series, thanks to work in part by production designer Philip Ivey. Romain Lacourbas’ cinematography grounds the film firmly in the world established by the four previous films and often succeeds in giving Ballerina its own distinct look from time to time. The editing of Jason Ballantine and Julian Clarke deftly moves the story from present to past without muddying the narrative in the slightest.

As Eve, Ana de Armas shines as the titular assassin on her first mission. Norman Reedus delivers a devoted father using his limited screen time. Young Ava Joyce McCarthy also provides Ella with a defined character that makes her more of a main protagonist than someone simply being protected or looked after.

As a franchise, the “John Wick” films have proven to be a force to be reckoned with via the international box office. With Ballerina, or From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, the series embarks on a welcome tangent that suggests bigger and better things yet to come.

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Mike Tyrkus

Editor in Chief at CinemaNerdz.com

An independent filmmaker, co-writer and director of over a dozen short films, the Editor in Chief of CinemaNerdz.com has spent much of the last three decades as a writer and editor specializing in biographical and critical reference sources in literature and the cinema, beginning in February 1991 reviewing films for his college newspaper. He was a member of the Detroit Film Critics Society, as well as the group's webmaster and one-time President for over a decade until the group ceased to exist. His contributions to film criticism can be found in Magill's Cinema Annual, VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever (of which he was the editor for nearly a decade until it too ceased to exist), the International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, and the St. James Film Directors Encyclopedia (on which he collaborated with editor Andrew Sarris). He has also appeared on the television program Critic LEE Speaking alongside Lee Thomas of FOX2 and Adam Graham, of The Detroit News. He currently lives in the Detroit area with his wife and their dogs.

@miketyrkus

Mike Tyrkus

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