Common

Apropos of nothing, I really liked Common’s character Cassian in John Wick 2.

Cassian had an upper level he was capable of, but he didn’t go there. He could have. The character had ceiling in his will to violence, ceiling Clausewitz would have urged him to explore. And in his first meeting with John, when John basically admits he killed Gianna, Cassian goes nearly to that level, drawing and shooting in a crowd. But after that Cassian is subdued, playing with the line between repressed and controlled. I rarely see that.

It might have been more intense for Common to play a screaming psycho, but it would have been less enjoyable. The character wouldn’t have been as cool. For a series like the John Wick movies that are anchored in their shtick, it would have been the wrong move. Common played Cassian exactly right. He fit the texture of the story. His character matched.

I hope there’s no bad blood in there (between actors/directors/etc. in the real world). I’d love to see a John vs Cassian movie, just two assassins going at it.

The High Table could be supporting Cassian as a patsy. Cassian might even know and not care. But I’d like a full movie of those two trying to kill each other, set against the backdrop of assassin politics.

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