Prime Video has just given a sneak peek at the characters and cast of the upcoming prequel series, The Continental: From the World of John Wick. In celebration of this reveal, award-winning artist, Yuko Shimizu, has treated fans to a unique piece of fan art. As a huge fan of the John Wick franchise, Shimizu expressed excitement about the collaboration with Prime Video for this project. She created the piece of art to showcase The Continental hotel, which is the primary setting of the show. Shimizu’s art teases the impending danger, intrigue and drama that the audience can expect to see in the origin story of Winston Scott. The three-part series will delve into the mysterious and deadly underworld of The Continental and charts Winston Scott’s journey to take control of the hotel and claim his throne.
Meet the cast of The Continental…
WINSTON SCOTT
Played by: Colin Woodell
Who is Winston Scott? Handsome, smart, cool, and collected, Winston is a savvy businessman who thinks outside the box. After a traumatic event put him in the crosshairs of the law, Winston was working as a successful businessman in London, when an underworld kingpin from his past, Cormac, sends him on a quest to find his estranged brother, Frankie.
Colin Woodell: “The Continental is a prequel story to the John Wick films, and if you have any familiarity with those films then you’ll know that this is a great introduction to the world. It’s about 30 to 40 years prior to when the films take place. We have all the producers from the films, so we have them overseeing and there is a really strict continuity to honour those and the style that they have in them. But what’s also wonderful is, this is the ‘70s, so it is going to be stylistically different.”
CHARON:
Played by: Ayomide Adegun
Who is Charon? When we meet young Charon, he is a trusted assistant to Cormac. Over the course of the event series, Charon’s loyalties will be tested and he’ll need to pick between his protector and a potential found family.
Ayomide Adegun: “Charon grew up in Nigeria with his father, and he’s not from a wealthy background at all. He comes from a rich Nigerian culture, which is based on respect and loyalty. I think him choosing The High Table is to better his life. It’s just the search for stability and a better quality of life—I feel like that’s always in the back of his mind. Lance Reddick’s performance definitely inspired me. I think he was a great guy and actor. I’ve tried to see it from two perspectives. I could either see it as loads of pressure on me and crumble under that, or trust that my interpretation of the character will align with Lance Reddick’s portrayal of Charon.”
CORMAC:
Played by: Mel Gibson
Who is Cormac? An intimidating force, ruthless, brutal, yet capable of charm, Cormac is a New York City kingpin who is the current manager at The Continental Hotel. Cormac has a history with Winston and Frankie Scott, and when Frankie steals something of immense value to Cormac’s superiors, Cormac drags Winston back into the criminal underworld. We’ll follow Cormac as his desperation mounts and his lunacy and anger boil over.
Mel Gibson: “He’s kind of like [Winston and Charon’s] mentor, or actually, mentor or tormentor, I’m not sure which. But he’s rather a nefarious character who’s like a father figure to them, and they perceive him that way when they’re young, but as they grow and begin to analyse who he really is, they realise he’s probably not the father figure he pretends to be. He’s pretty selfish in his own motives, and has used them in an ill way, and I think they’re burned by that and they want to get even. Rightly so.”
KD and MAYHEW
Played by: Mishel Prada and Jeremy Bobb
KD is a detective in the NYPD with no patience for the corruption that riddles the force. Determined to uncover the criminal goings-on in the city, fuelled by a personal agenda of her own, KD will stumble into the world of The Continental and ultimately come face to face with a ghost from her past.
Mayhew is also an NYPD detective and KD’s superior, though there is more to their relationship than meets the eye. Married with kids, Mayhew has a soft spot for KD, and warns her in no uncertain terms to stay away from The Continental Hotel.
Mishel Prada: “KD really follows the scent of justice, follows the scent of Frankie, follows the scent of what she’s been looking for, and it’s not business anymore, it starts to become personal. KD is not somebody that really follows the rules. So, when she’s told, ‘Don’t go in [The Continental], that’s not for you,’ the first thing she’s going to do is go in there.”
“The relationship with KD and Mayhew is all about power dynamics. These two people have been disempowered by life, and they’re constantly, every scene that they’re in, there’s a battle of who is the one on top. And I think with KD, that is part of what starts propelling her towards really re-empowering herself and feeling like she can be in control of something, because that is really important to her, to not feel that life is happening to her, to feel like she’s happening to life.”
FRANKIE and YEN
Played by: Ben Robson and Nhung Kate
Who is Frankie? Frankie is Winston’s older brother and a natural-born killer. While Winston became a successful London businessman, Frankie enlisted in the army and was sent to Vietnam. Upon returning stateside, Frankie becomes one of Cormac’s most trusted men, before stealing a priceless object from the heart of The Continental Hotel, setting in motion a plot that will reunite him with his brother Winston. Little does Frankie know that his act of defiance will alter the power balance of The Continental Hotel for years to come.
Who is Yen? Yen is Frankie’s wife, who is prepared to endure any hardship to be with him, including living underground and off the grid after he steals something that puts them both in grave danger. Deeply suspicious of everyone, Yen is shocked to learn that Frankie has a long-lost brother, Winston. A fierce fighter who will stop at nothing to protect those she loves, Yen represents second chances and found family. She is also the deadliest fighter of the entire group.
Ben Robson: “Frankie has such strong values towards family, at a time when it was really difficult to keep family together. He really showcases what he’s willing to do for his younger brother in Winston, and how much he goes through to give Winston the best chance at life. The whole reason he did everything he did was to protect Winston and keep him out of the very world that he’s re-entered.”
Robson on the relationship between Frankie and Yen: “You’ve got two people who come from two very different worlds, both very misunderstood, both trying to find that place they belong. And when they do find one another, they have to overcome a lot of obstacles—different cultures, different languages—but they have a common language, of war. That’s their real connection to one another; they’re masters of it in their own ways. They’re both quite tortured as individuals, and the only time they feel at ease is in one another’s company. And so when anything tries to get in the way of it or rip it apart or threaten it, you see very quickly this trained animalistic nature within the two of them that will do whatever it takes to protect the other one, not just themselves.”y
LOU and MILES
Played by: Jessica Allain and Hubert Point-Du Jour
Who is Lou? Smart and fearless, Lou is an expert martial artist who runs the dojo that her father left to her and her brother, Miles. Unfortunately, the dojo is a money pit, and Lou must reluctantly agree to work with her brother in his dangerous gun-running ring. Ever the pacifist, Lou refuses to use guns, but that creed will be put to the test.
Who is Miles? Tough, loyal, and smart, Miles is a Vietnam vet who got into gun running while abroad fighting a war he didn’t want to be a part of and for a country that didn’t respect him as a Black man. Miles runs guns with fellow vets Frankie and Lemmy, and his reluctant sister, Lou. Miles justifies his dangerous business as the only way to keep his late father’s dojo doors open.
Jessica Allain: “Lou grew up in New York without a mother in the home and had to be tough! Burton Karate is the only constant in her life and defending her family business is an endless fight. Martial arts is her only escape, a release from the hardships she’s had to face with losing both parents. A love hate relationship with her brother Miles brings her to The Continental, a place she associates with a world she’s tried to avoid her entire life. A young lady who tries to uphold righteousness, but somehow always ends up with a hand in the criminal underworld.”
Hubert Point-Du Jour: “Miles is the weapons master because he spent a lot of time in war—this show takes place in post-Vietnam by a couple of years. In the war, he picked up a lot of skills and understanding with weapons. His skills end up becoming very useful to Winston …
”The Continental: From the world of John Wick …will be available to international audiences (outside of the US) on Prime Video in September
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