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Laurence Fishburne & Ian McShane Return In New John Wick 3 Photo
The Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne) and Winston (Ian McShane) cross paths in the latest official photo from next year's John Wick 3: Parabellum. Fishburne and McShane were both previously confirmed as being members of the John Wick 3 cast, but this image is concrete proof that their characters with have a get-together at some point in the film.
McShane first played Winston in the original John Wick. That film established the character as being a powerful figure in the series' underworld of assassins and killers-for-hire, as well as the fellow who manages the global Continental Hotel chain. While Winston clearly has a soft spot for John (Keanu Reeves), he nevertheless excommunicated his pal in John Wick: Chapter Two when John broke the Continental's number one rule: no killing on hotel ground. However, Winston then refrained from having John executed and instead gave him an hour head-start, before he placed a hefty $14 million open contract on John's life (thus setting the stage for John Wick 3's story).
Fishburne as The Bowery King, on the other hand, has a less-than-friendly history with John that was alluded to, but left mostly unexplored, when he joined the franchise in John Wick: Chapter Two. Like Winston, The Bowery King is one of the rulers of New York City's clandestine underbelly and the pair have no doubt crossed paths off-screen at some point in the past. However, a new photo of the two characters posted to the official John Wick 3 Twitter account marks the first time that the duo have shared the screen with one another. You can check out that image, below.
While The Bowery King and Winston have no reason to fight each other that we know of, it's certainly possible the pair will clash with one another during the course of John Wick 3. On Twitter, this photo has a caption reading "Old friends. New Enemies", which could mean the two will be going to war themselves in the film. After all, Winston has put out a contract on John's life, whereas The Bowery King is still owed a favor for helping John in Chapter Two (though, as John himself warned Fishburne's character in that movie, "You don't want me owing you").
However things shake out between these two "old friends", John Wick 3 aims to bring some welcome closure to their respective story threads, as well as John's personal arc over the course of the last two films. At the same time, series writer Derek Kolstad and director Chad Stahelski will continue to expand and develop the franchise's mythology by introducing major players like Anjelica Huston as The Director of the High Table, among others. It's also been confirmed that McShane as Winston may yet return for Starz's The Continental TV series - so, regardless of what transpires between him and The Bowery King in John Wick 3: Parabellum, this might not be the last we see of The Continental's mysterious head.
John Wick: Chapter 3 (2019) release date: May 17, 2019
