Photo : Niko Tavernise ( Lionsgate )

It is sometimes difficult, when watching the endlessly entertaining John Wick franchise of action films, to imagine what its title character might be doing when not on the run from or brutally murdering international assassins. Sure, you’ve got some time penciled in on the schedule in for wife mourning, dog maintenance, and John Leguizamo hang-outs. But what does Baba Yaga do when he’s not knocking back drinks or knocking off enemies at the Continental?


Antique book restoration, apparently. This is per the man himself, Keanu Reeves, who gave an interview this week to Uproxx ahead of the release of John Wick: Chapter 3—Parabellum. Although admittedly tired, Reeves was his typically charming self, joking about the intricacies of knife-throwing, Bill & Ted, and his abiding affection for Wild, Wild West. (Really.) But he also revealed a bit of backstory that never made it into the Wick films about John’s non-murder-related hobbies :

In the first script they had John Wick described as working with old leather-bound books and book restoration. We filmed it. It’s not in the movie, but we filmed it. That’s what he did. Best case, yes, his wife had passed, and that’s what he had decided to do once he got out after the impossible task, that was his vocation.


And while we would actually love to see that cut footage, we have to say: We’re pretty sure John Wick would restore the fuck out of those books, right? Double-tapping them with preservative petroleum-based products, caring for the vellum with brutal, machine-like efficiency, and restoring spine integrity with the same dead-eyed calm and precision he normally reserves for snapping necks. People would look at his collection and say, “Jesus Christ, what happened here? These books are in really good condition, John Wick !”

Anyway, we hope all these dang global criminals will just leave John alone for a movie or two, so that we can finally focus on this high-octane, white-knuckle thrill ride action instead.