Exclusive Interview: Hiroyuki Sanada Talks John Wick: Chapter 4, His Mysterious Character, and One of the Most-Anticipated Scenes in the Film

Hiroyuki Sanada is an international superstar who needs no introduction. The award-winning actor has over one hundred credits to his name including Ring 2, The Last Samurai, Rush Hour 3, Lost, The Wolverine and 47 Ronin to name a few. He’ll next be seen in the highly-anticipated fourth installment of John Wick.

In John Wick: Chapter 4, the titular character uncovers a path to defeating the High Table. But before he can earn his freedom, Wick must face off against a new enemy with powerful alliances across the globe and forces that turn old friends into foes.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Hiroyuki about John Wick: Chapter 4, his mysterious character, and his involvement in one of the most-anticipated scenes in the film.

PC: You’ve worked with Keanu [Reeves] in the past. What was it like getting to reunite with him for John Wick 4? How beneficial was it having that prior relationship and friendship as you approached the brotherhood between your two characters?
Hiroyuki: Yeah, I worked with Keanu on 47 Ronin. That was maybe twelve years ago. At the time, he told me that his next big action movie was with Chad [Stahelski]. I was like, “Good luck!” So I watched John Wick 1, 2, 3, and then Chad called me. He was like, “I created a role for you. You’re an old friend of John Wick.” I was like, “Oh my goodness, that’s the best role for me!” Then I jumped into the project.

Keanu hasn’t changed at all. He’s always been humble and a hard worker. He’s such a nice guy. It’s so easy to collaborate with him. We’ve known each other for a long time, so we were able to put our own relationship into our characters. Koji Shimazu is a long friend of John Wick’s. They’ve grown up together and trained together. They’re almost like brothers. It was easy to find that chemistry.

PC: Chad has such a distinct way in which he films action sequences. What was it like getting to collaborate with him? Was it different from previous action films that you’ve done?
Hiroyuki: Yeah, I’d worked with Chad before as a stunt coordinator. This time, he’s the director. For actors, when the director understands action it’s a great thing because then it’s believable and so easy to communicate with them. If I said something, he immediately understood. He was like, “Then we can do this too!” Collaborating with him was so easy and fun.

PC: The fight sequence between your character and Donnie Yen’s character is one of the most highly anticipated scenes in the film. Chad said everyone came on set to watch you two work. What was it like filming that scene in particular and bringing your different styles to a franchise like John Wick and highlighting the different colors of Asian culture?
Hiroyuki: It was so much fun. We were shooting that scene all night. It was a beautiful set, and Chad gave us a great playground to play in. Donnie and I have different fighting styles and backgrounds. Chad was enjoying the reactions between both of us. Then the entire crew came to watch our fighting in the studio. It felt like a stage performance and the crew was the audience. There was a lot of great tension and no pressure for that scene. We both have experience creating action scenes, so it was easy to collaborate and put our ideas together. Each character has their own reason for being involved in that fight sequence. We brought all that emotion into the choreography. After it was all done, we gave each other high fives. It was so exciting and fun to collaborate with him.

To keep up with Hiroyuki, follow him on Instagram. John Wick: Chapter 4 hits theaters on March 24.