In a recent interview with Collider, John Wick Chapter 2 director Chad Stahelski divulged some crucial information on the status of a third saga in the popular action franchise where Keanu Reeves gets to beat up a few bad people with nonchalant grace.

Related: Chad Stahelski Interview on John Wick: Chapter 2

Firstly, and the most important thing to reveal was how long we have to wait before we get to witness Wick’s escapades as the door was left wide open for a sequel to Chapter 2. Whilst the Wick team are busy in the middle of writing the screenplay, actual filming doesn’t look set to start until early next year. It’s too early to confirm a release date but guessing from this revelation, 2019 looks set to set light to that wick.

“We’re currently in the middle of writing it right now,” Stahelski said of the film’s status, and it seems like the film pretty much has a green light; it’s just waiting on the filmmakers to get everything into place”.

“It’s more of a how fast can we get our shit together. But I would assume that if not by the end of this year, the beginning of next year.”

Whilst not committing to taking the helm on John Wick 3 as yet, Stahelski did say he was acting as a prep director for the time being – He is currently attached to the Highlander reboot so timing might not work in his favour to get behind the camera on the third project.

Chad Stahelski on John Wick 3

One thing was made clear; Stahelski has a clear vision of what he wants and what we can expect from John Wick 3 whilst sticking to the theme’s and feel of the franchise so far we can expect very much of the same but with cooler and more intricate set pieces.

“We want, not so much to go bigger on the third one but to show you more of the intricacies of the world… I feel like there are all these different subtleties that I skipped over in Number Two, that I’d like to go back to on [chapter three] and show you the inner workings of different parts of New York. So rather than massive set pieces, I’d like to show you cooler and more intricate ones… I think it would be a mistake budget wise and creatively to just go big and blow up a freeway. That’s not our gig. That’s a comic book or a Bond gig. We want to show you cool and intricate details. What are those little details in everyday life? Hopefully – we make people look at garbage collectors and cleaner vans and homeless people a little differently now.”

Whoever takes the reins in John Wick 3, they have a massive job on their hands, not just to get it right for the franchise’s many fans but from those that have more than a vested interest.