John Wick Chapter 4 premiere pays tribute to Lance Reddick

The emotions hit as hard as the action when the premiere of the latest in the Wick series gives an ovation for the late actor.

The LA premiere of John Wick Chapter 4 was a bittersweet occasion. Although the stars, the crew, and the fans were ready to enjoy the movie being released, it was hard not to think about one of the movie’s treasured actors — Lance Reddick. Reddick had shockingly passed last Friday at age 60 amid no signs of health conditions or foul play. The prestigious actor would portray one of the franchise’s biggest supporting roles as Charon, the concierge of The Continental. The Hollywood Reporter describes the guests’ reactions as the whole premiere paid tribute to Reddick.

Firstly, attendees of the premiere would sport royal blue ribbons in honor of Lance.

Then, the screening would start with a standing ovation for Reddick as the Lionsgate film boss, Jim Drake, introduced the film with a short tribute, “There have been a lot of tears. There have been a lot of moments of quiet reflection. Tonight what I would like you to do, however, is make a loud, honoring, grateful applause for a man who was an absolutely extraordinary human being, extraordinary actor and a big part of this franchise.”

Back on the red carpet, THR interviews Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne as they try to fight back emotions when talking about their good friend. “Every time you were in his presence, he was such a special person, special artist, and he had a grace and dignity, and a passion for life and his craft. Just to be in his light and to be in his presence and get a chance to work with him, every day was special,” Reeves says in remembrance. Fishburne would call Reddick “the heart of these movies in many ways.” Fishburne would add, “We lost our brother. But we made a beautiful movie, it’s the best of all of them, and I think people are going to love it and that’s what it’s about, right? He wouldn’t want us to not do this.”

Director Chad Stahelski recalls casting Reddick as one of the first actors on the roster when they started the first film in 2014. Stahelski and his directing partner, David Leitch, were still new to directing when they filmed with him. “Lance walked in the first day in the suit, and we stood up and we were like, ‘OK, take one,’ and it was good; take two and he was like, ‘What can I do better?’ And we were like, ‘Lance we really don’t know what we’re doing but please help us. He just mentored us through the first day of shooting with him. He was so kind, so generous, and we still joke about it today. He’s always been the most collaborative, most positive guy I’ve ever met.”

Leitch recalled how involved Reddick was in shaping his character on that first movie, “As a filmmaker you look for artists that are going to be great collaborators, and he was the epitome of that. Someone who came in to share ideas full-heartedly and I just can’t say enough about him as a human being and as an artist.”

John Wick Chapter 4 hits theaters this Friday.