“I’ve loved it so far”: Ian McShane addresses his potential return as Winston in John Wick 5

As important as Baba Yaga, aka John Wick (Keanu Reeves), is for John Wick 5, he isn't complete without the people who have accompanied him throughout the story. One of them is Winston (Ian McShane), the manager of the New York Continental. The fifth film is currently in development, but except for Reeves, appearances of other cast members aren't official.

Ian McShane was talking to Collider recently, where he said, regarding his return to the action thriller franchise,

"If I’m still around, but they decide to do it, that would be a very nice thing. Yeah, I’ve loved it so far. It’s been a great, great 11 years. And, and as I said, it’s sort of like a family because we same director, same photographer, much the same actors with editions down again. But yeah, it’s been a good trip so far."

The veteran actor has been attached to the franchise since it began in 2014 and will be a part of the fifth film and first installment in it, From the World of John Wick: Ballerina.

A close-up of Ian McShane's role in the franchise

Colin Woodell plays the younger Winston in a spin-off TV show. (Image via Lionsgate Movies)

We'll see if he appears in John Wick 5 or not, though there's no reason for him to be excluded, especially after the ending of the fourth film. However, he has been a pivotal character in it who has supported John through thick and thin, though in his own way.

Winston first appears in his hotel when John Wick is hunting for Viggo's (Michael Nyqvist) son, Iosef (Alfie Allen), who has killed his dog. Later in the film, he has one of the assassins assassinated for an assassination attempt on Wick on the New York Continental, which is considered neutral ground.

No one can conduct business like this on the Continental grounds, and we see Winston repeating this in the sequel, too. However, things have gotten out of hand here, and Wick eventually kills Santino (Riccardo Scamarcio), setting up a stage for Parabellum.

The third chapter proves to be a bit heavy for Winston, as his job is now at stake for helping John. The former had to shoot the latter eventually. However, you'll see, Winston is like the smartest guy in the whole franchise, so this is a part of the plan.

John Wick: Chapter 4 is when Winston is stripped of his duties at the Continental and is declared an excommunicado. In a major turn of events, he gets his position back but the end also indicates that this is the end of Wick's story. That said, John Wick 5 may not be a continuation but a prequel of sorts.

What's the latest update on John Wick 5?

John Wick: Chapter 4 was released in 2023. (Image via Lionsgate Movies)

It's that confirmation about John Wick 5 at CinemaCon that the film is currently in development. There's no word on how the story will play out. We are speculating about a prequel, but the chances of that happening are low, as an animated film featuring that "impossible task" is already in the works. This will be tricky for the creators if they are actually thinking about bringing the Deadman back into the franchise.