Screenwriter: Keanu Reeves' mix-up turned original title 'Scorn' into 'John Wick'

John Wick was originally titled Scorn, but screenwriter Derek Kolstad said in a 2020 interview with Comicbook.com that Keanu Reeves kept referring to the project by the character’s name, prompting marketing to officially rename the film. The 2014 movie follows former hitman John Wick (Reeves) after his wife’s death and the killing of the puppy she gave him; the break-in also saw the theft of his 1969 Mustang and tied Wick back to Viggo Tarasov, the son’s criminal connections and a cycle of violent revenge.

Kolstad told Comicbook.com that "The only reason it's called John Wick is that Keanu kept referring to it as John Wick," and that marketing said, "Dude, that's four to five million dollars in free advertising so far, so it's John Wick instead of Scorn." Kolstad added, "I can't imagine it being Scorn now." Collider’s piece notes that the name John Wick gives the film a presence and mystery tied to the character—something the writer argued "Scorn" would not have conveyed as effectively for a long-running franchise.

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