Donnie Yen’s John Wick Spinoff Adds Pirates of the Caribbean Actor
Pirates of the Caribbean standout Bill Nighy has joined Caine, Lionsgate’s John Wick spinoff, with Donnie Yen back as the blind assassin and production tearing across two continents.
Here’s a move that’s bound to get British film fans buzzing: Bill Nighy—he of the ‘actually, I think I’m in love’ fame—is hopping onto the ever-expanding John Wick universe. Yes, that’s the same Bill Nighy who pops up in everything from undead brawls to Richard Curtis tearjerkers, now pulled into the high-octane chaos of hitmen, secret societies, and ridiculous shootouts. He’s confirmed for Lionsgate’s John Wick spinoff Caine, which, if you’ve not been keeping score, centres on Donnie Yen’s scene-stealing, blind assassin from John Wick: Chapter 4.
What’s the actual setup?
Caine is currently in production, and they’re not messing about—it’s shooting in Budapest and Hong Kong, presumably to keep up the franchise’s tradition of blowing up global landmarks and leaving a trail of dead stuntmen in expensive suits. Donnie Yen is pulling double duty as both director and star, stepping back into the role of Caine, who—spoiler for the last Wick film—finally wriggled free from under the thumb of the High Table.
If you need a refresher: the High Table’s that shadowy cabal pulling all the strings in John Wick’s underworld, basically a multinational boardroom for the worst people you’d ever meet in a hotel bar.
Who else is along for the ride?
- Mason Thames (The Black Phone)
- Dacre Montgomery (Stranger Things)
- Rina Sawayama returning as Akira. If you remember, Akira worked at that not-so-neutral assassin hotel, lost her dad in Chapter 4, and holds a proper grudge against Caine.
- Bill Nighy—no character details revealed just yet, but safe to say he’s not turning up as someone’s kindly grandfather in this universe.
The folks pulling the strings (behind the scenes, not the High Table... yet)
There’s a decent pedigree in the writing department. Mattson Tomlin handled the script (he’s got The Batman Part II on his slate, plus Keanu Reeves’s comic book adaptation BRZRKR), with Michael McGrale on co-writing duties. As for producers, you’ve got Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee from Thunder Road, plus Chad Stahelski (the original Wick mastermind) producing via 87Eleven Entertainment. Donnie Yen and Courtney Brock are on exec producer credits, and—oddly lining up with franchise tradition—Keanu Reeves himself is producing, along with John Saunders.
Nighy’s still everywhere, if you haven’t noticed
You’d be forgiven for losing track of everything Bill Nighy turns up in, since he doesn’t seem to sleep. He first blew up with Love Actually, but he’s also put in hours across About Time, the Underworld vampire films, and just about every BBC drama set in the English countryside.
This summer, if you need even more Nighy, he’s appearing with Octavia Spencer and Hannah Waddingham in Ride or Die. There’s also California Avenue for the BBC, opposite Helena Bonham Carter. He’s repped by UTA, Independent Talent Group and Jackoway Austen—agencies who seem keen on making sure he never takes an actual holiday.
As for what exactly Nighy will be up to in Caine? No details yet, so place your bets now. If he manages to keep his suit clean in a John Wick film, it’ll be a first.