John Wick Spin-Off Show The Continental Will Be A '70s Prequel About Young Winston

New details have been revealed about the upcoming John Wick show The Continental. It will be a prequel series focusing on the young Winston, the character played by Ian McShane in the movies.

The news comes via a Deadline interview with Kevin Beggs, the chairman of Lionsgate TV, which is producing The Continental for Starz. Beggs stated that the show will be set in "crumbling New York in the 1970s," and will explore the origins of both the titular hitman hotel and how Winston came to be its manager.

"What we're exploring in The Continental is the young Winston and how it came to be that he and his team of confederates found their way into this hotel which we have met for the first time in the movie franchise 40 years later," he said. "That's the arena. I won't give away more than that, but Starz really leaned into this take also, and they have been great collaborators."

Beggs also revealed that The Continental Season 1 will consist of three 90 minute episodes "which you could construe as a limited series or a limited event series.” The show doesn't have a release date yet.

Unsurprisingly, given the series is set many decades ago, neither McShane or John Wick star Keanu Reeves are expected to appear. Beggs stated that Reeves "is likely executive producing," while Reeves and Wick movie director Chad Stahelski "have read every draft and been enthusiastic supporters of expanding this universe in a meaningful way." McShane had already stated he wouldn't appear, but did previously tell Rotten Tomatoes that "I may give 'em a voiceover."

As for the movie series, John Wick 4 and 5 are set to shoot back-to-back later this year. John Wick 4 hits theaters in May 2022, while John Wick 5 doesn't currently have a release date. They'll both be directed by Stahelski once more, but franchise creator Derek Kolstad won't be involved.