John Wick 4 star Donnie Yen struggled to make the character less generic

The 59-year-old action legend wanted to go beyond Asian stereotypes for his character in the upcoming Keanu Reeves movie.

If you ever find yourself in a fight with Donnie Yen, you better make sure you’re ready to lose. The ip man star took on the best of them. In the coming John Wick: Chapter 4Yen is expected to take on star Keanu Reeves in a match that rivals anything you’ve seen before. CBR now reports that Yen’s character Caine was originally intended to look very different. The action legend was originally slated to sport a dated, stereotypical Asian look, but Yen wanted to spread his wings far from that. That is John Wick finally.

Yen recently sat down with GQ to discuss his participation in the upcoming sequel. Yen had taken his reservations to the director, Chad Stahelski. “The name was Shang or Chang. Why does he always have to be called Shang or Chang? Why can’t he have a normal name? Why do you have to be so generic? Then the wardrobe again – oh, stand-up collar. Why is everything so generic? This is a John Wick film. Everyone should be cool and fashionable. Why can’t he look cool and fashionable?”

The John Wick Franchise is tailor-made for fans of stars like Yen. And the action sequences definitely look inspired by similar work, particularly Reeve’s earlier work on the matrix Movies featuring fight choreography by martial arts legend Yuen Wo Ping. Despite the initial character flaw, Yen had a great time working on the film. “I had a very respectful experience working on John Wick. Overall, I enjoyed making the film.”

Although he doesn’t see it, the action legend is 59 years old. He’s seen a lot in business on both sides of the pond. In Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Yen also wanted to make sure his character is a character from a galaxy far, far away. He also took the opportunity to spread his wings as an actor by improvising comedic lines. In XXX: The return of Xander CageYen was also able to show more personality, being more than a stoic, mustache-twirling villain, adding a swagger and sense of humor to his character.

Buckle up for the action John Wick Chapter 4 arrives March 24th.