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John Wick 4: King of Jordan lent Keanu Reeves movie a helicopter to capture aerial shot

‘We were trying to get to a location we couldn’t access,’ director Chad Stahelski said

Inga Parkel
Friday 24 March 2023 11:59 EDT
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John Wick: Chapter 4, Trailer

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John Wick 4 would missed out on a beautiful sunrise shot if it hadn’t been for the King of Jordan’s helping hand.

The popular action franchise’s newest entry sees legendary assassin John Wick (Keanu Reeves) go international, travelling across the globe to seek out the most powerful players in the underworld.

In order to shoot one of the movie’s scenes – in which Wick returns to the Moroccan desert to confront The Elder (Saïd Taghmaoui), whom he first encountered in John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum – the crew filmed on location in Jordan.

However, according to director Chad Stahelski, the aerial shots needed of the desert wouldn’t have been possible if it weren’t for the King of Jordan.

“We were trying to get to a location we couldn’t access,” Stahelski told BuzzFeed in a new interview, while joined by Reeves.

“The King of Jordan gave us a Black Hawk,” he said. “He was nice enough to lend us a helicopter to fly the crew out to get the sunrise shot that you see in the movie.”

Responding, Reeves, noted that the King “gave you a helicopter to get a shot because [he’s] a fan of John Wick”.

“That’s kind of cool.”

Keanu Reeves in ‘John Wick: Chapter 4'
Keanu Reeves in ‘John Wick: Chapter 4' (Murray Close/Lionsgate)

Released today (24 March) in cinemas, John Wick 4 is already a critical success, securing a Rotten Tomatoes milestone for the franchise.

In The Independent’s four-star review of the film, Clarrise Loughrey wrote that the “action sequel commits so nobly to self-seriousness that it borders on camp”, calling it “a cinematic legacy well secured”.

The film is dedicated to the late Lance Reddick, who returns alongside Reeves, Laurence Fishburne and Ian McShane.

Reddick died suddenly on 17 March. He was 60.

During the movie’s recent premiere, his co-stars paid tribute to him, with Reeves telling Deadline that it“f***ing sucks he’s not here”.

“Lance was a beautiful person. And to have the chance to work with him over 10 years and four films is something that is very special to me,” the Canadian actor added.

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