‘John Wick: Chapter 4’ Video Goes Behind-the-Scenes of Insane Staircase Fight Sequence

It was painful to see John Wick make his way through the famous stairs of Sacré-Coeur only to be thrown down in the recent John Wick: Chapter 4. Fans have seen the now famous sequence again and again and have marveled at the character’s strength. John Wick’s determination and the captivating cinematography is reminiscent of another iconic moment in cinema – the famous scene in Rocky where Sylvester Stallone ends his morning run with an ascent up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. A new behind-the-scenes featurette by IGN gives us a glimpse into what went into making the iconic scene.

“This is John Wick’s last hurrah, and he knows it’s the end of the line. He’s got one mission he’s going to finish it, whether he ends up alive or dead. At the end of it it’s kind of a mad sprint to the end,” explains Jeremy Marinas, the fight choreographer. The stakes of the scene are further amplified by the ticking clock and the urgency to make it atop before sunrise.

Stephen Dunley, stunt choreographer explains the logistics of the location, “we have 300 steps, that just go into the sky and we’ve got to fight up them we’ve go to fight back down, we’ve got to fight up again.” He elaborates, “If you’ve seen those Sacré-Coeur stairs, it’s a pretty steep staircase. And the wonderful thing about that is there’s so much to play with. We have ramps on the side with trees, there’s people getting shot and chipped off ramps in trees and down railings over the sides.” Certainly, director Chad Stahelski and the crew made complete use of the location with each take packing as much visual information as possible.

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John Wick’s Superpower is His Will

Stahelski explains the assassin’s mindset as “We always say, John Wick with the martial arts, it’s not the gun or the stick or the knife or the sword – it’s an extension of your arm, it’s an extension of your will and if there’s one word that describes John Wick its willpower. Like, the guy will not stay down.” Further adding,

He’s not indestructible, he just gets up. He gets knocked down a thousand times and just gets up a thousand and one.

The director is well known for his long action takes that give fans the ultimate pleasure of thrilling stunts. This also means Keanu Reeves performs most of the stunts himself, Stahelski explains, “we try to use the double as little as possible and don’t like a lot of cuts. [I] want you to see, you know, let’s hear Yuki Sonata and Donnie Yen dueling with swords, that’s Keanu Reeves and Donnie Yen dueling with swords and guns.” And certainly, these action sequences have become the main hook of the franchise, the director notes, “Like ah John Wick, man it could have been a great action film. No, I want to be the best action, period like, I just want you to sit back and have fun, I want to be the best.”

Stahleski and Reeves also spoke to Collider about filming the iconic scene, revealing what went into bringing the staircase sequence to life and how long it took to film. John Wick: Chapter 4 is available on Digital and Blu-Ray. You can check out the new video below: