Ballerina director says it was "wonderful" to work with John Wick star Keanu Reeves: "Stepping back from it, you could feel that this is iconic"

Ballerina brings the John Wick franchise back to the big screen with a new protagonist at its helm: Eve, played by Ana de Armas, a member of the shadowy Ruska Roma organization masquerading as a ballet school that we first saw in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum.

Of course, it wouldn't be a Wick movie without the man himself, but Ballerina delivers on that front. Fans only expecting a cameo from Reeves should be pleasantly surprised, too, by his role in the film, and director Len Wiseman and de Armas are full of praise for him when we sit down with them ahead of Ballerina's release.

"He was wonderful to work with. Stepping back from it, you could feel that this is iconic," Wiseman tells GamesRadar+, referencing one of Reeves' later scenes. "But also he's so committed, he's so hard on himself, and you see why he is who he is. We'll continue to shoot until the sun goes down to get it right. And there's a reason that we all line up to watch him, so being able to be a part of that was really fun to see."

Eve and John's paths cross on account of their shared past with the Ruska Roma, but Reeves and de Armas have their own personal history, too. "I loved reuniting with Keanu again," de Armas tells us.

"It's such a beautiful thing for me, because I met Keanu 10 years ago when I did my first movie in the US, and it's quite surreal to now be a part of the John Wick franchise. Now he's in our movie, blessing our film and supporting the film in this way, and it's just really amazing. Keanu is just so awesome as a human being, and also to have on set. He's so full of energy and he's so generous and so much fun to have around."

Ballerina hits theaters on June 6. In the meantime, check out our guide to the rest of the biggest upcoming movies still to come in 2025.