The John Wick saga continues with news of a fourth installment in the franchise currently in production. That means more of Keanu Reeves in the titular role of assassin-extraordinaire John Wick, and consequently, more explosions, gun battles, and fistfights. It also means more quotes that will serve as standouts in the franchise for years to come.
John Wick and his fellow characters have uttered some great lines that fans love, and that’s a testament to sharp writing inside an otherwise straightforward action series. John might say very little, but what he does say ends up sticking, while other characters in the series make their own marks with a series of great quotes and one-liners.
That’s The Title Of The Movie
“Para Bellum.” (John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum)
Not a lot of John Wick fans knew what the title Parabellum meant when they went into the third installment in the franchise, but they sure knew what it meant by the end. It’s a stylish Latin quote that set the tone for the third film, and in hindsight, the first two chapters as well.
When the Continental is about to be invaded by goons, John and Charon get ready to take them out. Winston, calm as ever, says, “Para bellum,” which when translated means “prepare for war.” The ensuing action scene definitely lived up to that insinuation, in more ways than one.
John Understands
[Sofia] “He Shot My Dog!” [John] “I Get It.” (John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum)
Halle Berry was apparently a big fan of the John Wick franchise and asked the producers if she could have a role in the third installment. Thus, the character of Sofia was introduced, and she was every bit as lethal and ruthless as John was, especially with two attack dogs at her side.
When one of the threequel’s villains shoots one of her dogs, Sofia loses her calm and collected demeanor and becomes consumed with a desire for revenge. Angrily, she tells John, “He shot my dog,” and John simply replies, “I get it," which is a reference to the first film in the franchise when his own dog was fatally wounded in one of John Wick’s saddest scenes.
With A Pencil Of All Things
“I Once Saw Him Kill Three Men In A Bar… With A Pencil.” (John Wick)
In the first film, when Wick first announces his intentions to come after Viggo’s son Iosef, Viggo tries to illustrate to his son the kind of grave danger he’s in. These early scenes help establish John’s legendary status among the assassin community, and why he’s so feared even among the criminal elite.
Viggo tells his son, “John is a man of focus, commitment, sheer will… something you know very little about. I once saw him kill three men in a bar…with a pencil. With a f***ing pencil!” This foreshadowed an entire franchise worth of amazing John Wick action sequences that reinvigorated the action movie genre.
She’s Not Wrong
“Nothing’s Ever Just A Conversation With You, John.” (John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum)
Whenever John Wick goes somewhere, there’s a strong chance that chaos and destruction will follow in short order. This was demonstrated in the third chapter when he tells Sofia, “…we’re not going in like the old days. Just a conversation.”
She replies, “Nothing’s ever just a conversation with you, John.” As fans who watched the first two chapters of the franchise already know, John rarely talks things out without the bullets flying.
That’s Enough Of A Reason For Revenge
[Aurelio] “He Stole John Wick’s Car, Sir, And, Uhhh… Killed His Dog.” [Viggo Tarasov] “…..Oh.” (John Wick)
One of the funniest moments of the first John Wick film was when Viggo Tarasov called up his local chop shop affiliate Aurelio, to find out why he’d slapped his son Iosef. Under normal circumstances, this would have been met with severe retaliation, and perhaps even death.
However, Aurelio pointed out the reason for slapping Iosef with this quote, which left Viggo stunned. He was only able to utter a simple “…Oh” in response, which was all the audience needed to understand the gravity of the situation. This was one of several clever ways the first John Wick film set such a high bar.
All John Needs For War
“Guns. Lots Of Guns.” (John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum)
In John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, John teams up with Winston to fend off the bad guys, and he’s asked what he needs. John simply replies, “Guns. Lots of guns.” The line is taken directly from the first Matrix film where he played Neo, one of Keanu Reeves’ most iconic roles.
Parabellum’s use of this line is just one of many references to The Matrix trilogy included in the John Wick movies as a wink to the audience. For instance, the Bowery King was played by Laurence Fishburne, who played Morpheus alongside Reeves in The Matrix movies. He also has red and blue containers, a nod to the red and blue pills offered to Neo in The Matrix.
The Return
“You Wanted Me Back… I’m Back!” (John Wick: Chapter 2)
The sequel John Wick: Chapter 2 continued the story with the titular assassin getting a new dog, and preparing to go back to a rather peaceful existence. However, the events of the first movie got him back in the game in a way that he did not expect, and he soon found himself beholden to an oath he took during his heyday.
In the sequel, he says, “You wanted me back… I’m back!” In contrast to the first film, John ends up showcasing a much meaner, nastier side of his assassin persona, this time on a different scale. The first film was about revenge, but the second film went far beyond the personal, and John reacted accordingly.
The Boogeyman
“That F***in’ Nobody Is John Wick. He Was Once An Associate Of Ours. They Call Him… Baba Yaga.” (John Wick)
Viggo Tarasov wasn’t the best father, but he did love his foolish son enough to explain the weight of his actions, and the whirlwind he had unleashed in the process. A simple break and enter, a dead dog and a stolen car would lead to unimaginable chaos. Viggo confirmed this when he said “It’s not what you did, son, that angers me so. It’s who you did it to.”
Iosef incredulously asks, “Who? That f***ing nobody?” Viggo then gives both he and the audience a window into Wick’s reputation with this quote, which references the ancient Slavic monster of myth and legend known as Baba Yaga, which is said to devour children on occasion.
Vengeance Is All He Needs
“No Wife, No Dog, No Home. You Have Nothing, John. Vengeance Is All You Have Left.” (John Wick 2)
Santino D’Antonio ended up on John Wick’s hit list when he double-crossed the latter, and that meant his life was pretty much forfeit. Wick ended up tracking him down and confronting him and his men inside a hall of mirrors, where D’Antonio tried his best to rattle John’s cage.
He uttered this quote to make John angry, but he also surmised that there was a ring of truth to it, as well. Could a man like John Wick, who’d spent so many years killing people, really go back to a normal life? That was the question that D’Antonio hoped would linger in John’s mind, even after he’d gone.
Scarier Than The Boogeyman
“Well, John Wasn’t Exactly ‘The Boogeyman.’ He Was The One You Sent To Kill The F***in’ Boogeyman.” (John Wick)
As soon as Viggo Tarasov explains to his son that the man he targeted used to be a deadly assassin nicknamed “Baba Yaga,” Iosef translates it roughly as “The Boogeyman?’” Viggo is quick to correct his son on what exactly the reference is meant to imply.
He then mutters this quote to indicate just how lethal and dangerous John Wick really was. A Boogeyman was scary enough, but an individual capable of taking down the Boogeyman was infinitely more so. Iosef would soon learn how real that threat was.
A Fan-Favorite Character Greets John
“How Good To See You Again So Soon, Mr. Wick.” (John Wick: Chapter 2)
This quote from Lance Reddick’s character Charon also reflects the audience’s feelings when a second film in the franchise was released. John Wick became an instant hit series and developed a rabid fanbase in relatively short order. To have him return to the Continental and receive this welcoming quote was an excellent nod to the audience.
Charon, of course, is the concierge at the Continental and, as far as he was concerned, Wick had retired. He’s both delighted and surprised to see John back at the hotel so soon. It would quickly set the table for an all-out action-fest with a very different set of stakes.
Retirement Isn’t His Strong Suit
[Bowery King] “You’re Not Very Good At Retiring.” [John] “I’m Workin’ On It.” (John Wick 2)
Plenty of assassins in the underworld were surprised to learn that John Wick had come out of self-imposed retirement, and was now back in the game - at least somewhat. In truth, John was getting pulled deeper into his old life, and he’d much rather have sat it out, altogether.
The Bowery King was similarly surprised when he encountered Wick in the second film, leading to this particular exchange. It seemed that for every step Wick took into a normal life, he ended up taking three steps back into his old one.
Don’t Paint The Devil Into A Corner
“You Stabbed The Devil In The Back, And Forced Him Back Into The Life That He Just Left.” (John Wick: Chapter 2)
Santino D’Antonio made a fatal error when he decided to push John Wick too far, and the result was a target on his own head. Wick was prepared to do whatever it took to kill his former employer, and Winston knew that better than anyone. When the friction became too much, it was time to give D’Antonio some much-needed clarity.
Winston had D’Antonio seal the end of a contract, which effectively released John from any 0bligations to him. He then uttered this line to D’Antonio to try and get him to understand what he’d just done. John was ready to retire and call it quits, but D’Antonio’s own actions brought him back into the fold.
John Is Ready For War
“Whoever Comes, Whoever It Is… I’ll Kill Them. I’ll Kill Them All!” (John Wick: Chapter 2)
At the end of the second chapter in the John Wick franchise, a contract was put on John’s head, declaring him “excommunicado” from the Continental for violating one of their most sacred rules. The third film began with John on the run from an entire community of assassins out to make good on a payday.
Rather than be terrified by this prospect, John took it on the chin and told Winston, “Tell them all… Whoever comes, whoever it is… I’ll kill them. I’ll kill them all!" He would end up doing exactly that when Parabellum was released, which put his assassin skills to the ultimate test.
A Setup For The Fourth Film
“They About To Learn That If You Cut A King, You Better Cut Him To The Quick!” (John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum)
After the High Table dispensed with the Bowery King’s services for aiding John Wick, he was given seven days to abdicate his position, or face repercussions. He refused to heed the warning and appeared to nearly lose his life in the process, showing up at the end of the third film with heavy facial scarring.
It was there that he uttered this quote, before asking John Wick if he was just as “pissed” as he was at the High Table. John replied with a simple “Yeah,” indicating that the two were going to team up and take out their mutual hatred on the High Table in a fourth film. The Bowery King is one of the most intelligent criminals in the entire John Wick franchise, so it remains to be seen how he’ll get vengeance on his enemies.
High Standards
“Rusty, I Guess.” (John Wick)
John always keeps his cool, even under tremendous pressure. Even being captured by the Russian mafia and tied to a chair to be tortured and killed did not faze him. At the beginning of the first film, John was set upon by Iosef Tarasov and his thugs, who broke into his home, killed his dog, and stole his prized automobile.
After deciding to get back into the game and dish out revenge, he visited Winston at the Continental, who was surprised to see a bruised and battered John before his very eyes. When he questioned whether John was the one who was supposed to deal out the damage, he replied with this funny quote, indicating that he needed to brush up on his skills a little bit.
It Wasn’t Just A Dog
“Everything’s Got A Price.” (John Wick)
What makes this line even better is that John utters it in Russian after killing his assailant. It’s a callback to an earlier scene in which Iosef tried to buy John’s car, and he refused, only for Iosef to mutter the exact same line to him.
Later, John finally catches up with Iosef, who pleads with him not to kill him over what was “just a dog." John shoots him and repeats his own line, “Everything’s got a price," indicating that Iosef had gone far enough for him to come out of retirement and dish out vengeance.
Much Easier To Give Him A Gun
“You Want A War, Or You Want To Just Give Me A Gun?” (John Wick: Chapter 2)
There are two options when John Wick goes to an acquaintance for help, and he lays them out with this particular quote which basically insinuates that they’d better give him a weapon and get out of the way, or pick one up and start fighting.
He delivers the same ultimatum to the Bowery King, a man who is not so easily intimidated, even by the most ruthless. Nevertheless, John displays no fear, and gives the Bowery King the same ultimatum, despite whatever odds were stacked against him.
John Is Built Different
“I’ll Say This, John. They Sure As F*** Broke The Mold With You.” (John Wick)
Viggo Tarasov wasn’t about to let John Wick simply kill his son in retaliation, but it was impossible for him not to respect the man, at the same time. He tried his best to come to some sort of a deal that would satisfy both parties, but John wasn’t about to let it go.
When push came to shove, Viggo was forced to acknowledge what a one-of-a-kind killer John Wick really was. He uttered this quote which summed up what he, and many others must have felt about Wick’s status as a legendary assassin.
The Baba Yaga Returns
“I’m Thinkin’ I’m Back!” (John Wick)
Perhaps the strongest quote in the John Wick franchise is also one of the simplest, though it does come attached to a rather lengthy bit of exposition on his own part. John utters this quote in the first film as a reference to the notion that he’s not fooling around, and he fully intends to make good on his promise to kill Iosef Tarasov.
“When Helen died, I lost everything, until that dog arrived on my doorstep. A final gift from my wife. In that moment, I received some semblance of hope. An opportunity to grieve un-alone. And your son took that from me… stole that from me… killed that from me! People keep asking if I’m back, and I haven’t really had an answer. But now, yeah, I’m thinkin’ I’m back! So, you can either hand over your son, or you can die screaming alongside him!”
