Donnie Yen to team up with Keanu Reeves in John Wick 4

Donnie Yen, one of the most successful actor-filmmakers from the east, is all set to star alongside Keanu Reeves starrer John Wick 4, directed by Chad Stahelski for Lionsgate.

Yen, best known for his roles in films such as xXx: Return of Xander Cage and the IP Man franchise, will play the role of an old friend of Reeves' super-assassin character of John Wick in the Lionsgate movie. The two friends share the same history and many of the same enemies, as reported by Deadline.

The Hong-Kong actor is known for his unique style of screen combat. Yen’s casting comes weeks after Lionsgate confirmed Japanese-British pop superstar Rina Sawayama for a lead role. Expressing his excitement on Yen's casting, director Stahelski said, "We are very lucky to have Donnie Yen join the franchise. I am looking forward to working with him in this exciting new role."

Producer Basil Iwanyk also shared his thoughts on Yen's arrival and said, “Donnie Yen will bring a vibrant and powerful energy to the franchise. We were determined to bring him on board to John Wick 4 and are thrilled for the opportunity to have such a major talent to collaborate with Keanu.”

All the three previous films in the Reeves-led franchise: John Wick (2014), John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017) and John Wick: Chapter 3 Parabellum (2019) have been directed by Stahelski.

The fourth instalment of the hit franchise is penned by Shay Hatten and Michael Finch with Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee and Stahelski working as producers on the project. Reeves and Louise Rosner take up the role of executive producers.

Filming is all set to begin this year on location in France, Germany and Japan. The first three instalments of the John Wick franchise are available to stream on Amazon Prime Videos.