Summary
- The world of John Wick is a dark and underground criminal society full of assassins who abide by a strict code of conduct and hierarchy.
- The High Table is a council of crime lords that rule the criminal world, and their word is absolute law.
- The Continental is not just a hotel, but a network of facilities and services for assassins, with branch managers who have complete authority over Continental business.
The world of John Wick has expanded considerably throughout the four movies and spin-off series, so having the John Wick universe explained can be tricky. John Wick first introduced audiences to a dark, polished, and sharply dressed, underground criminal society full of assassins who (mostly) abide by an unspoken code of conduct and two explicit rules. While the first movie told a more intimate story that only hinted at the larger world of this secret society, John Wick: Chapter Two took the titular character through several of the corners of this complex underworld, revealing even more about the world of John Wick.
Then, John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and John Wick: Chapter 4 revealed more of the High Table, as well as the world below and out of sight of the High Table. John Wick's spinoff The Continental, which is set in the 1970s as Winston becomes the manager of the titular hotel, revealed more of the universe, and 2024's Ballerina will undoubtedly shine a light on more of the world too. While very few of this world's customs and traditions are explicitly explained, there are more than enough hints and reveals to provide a broad picture of how these criminal organizations operate.
The High Table
The underground criminal world in which John Wick lives is structured as a layered society of crime lords with a strict hierarchy. Viggo Tarasov and his brother Abram headed up the Russian syndicate in New York City, but as John Wick 2 shows, they are far from the top of the food chain. The High Table is a council of high-level crime lords that rule the criminal world. The council is comprised of 12 seats, with each seat often owned by a family, and their word is law and absolute.
Gianna D’Antonio inherited her father’s seat after his death, but her brother Santino D’Antonio craved the power for himself, ordering John Wick to kill his sister, and fulfilling John's blood oath in the process. However, Gianna took her own life, Santonio tried to get John Wick killed, and John killed Santonio instead, getting Wick "excommunicado" from the High Table with a massive $14 million bounty on his head, as all services provided under the jurisdiction of the high table are restricted to him.
The Elder
The John Wick universe explained in John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum that the entire world exists under The High Table and The Elder (Saïd Taghmaoui). As the only known authority that sits above the table in the John Wick underworld hierarchy, The Elder alone is able to remove the bounty on John Wick's head. Such is the absolute power of The Elder that he will only offer a pardon in exchange for Wick's fealty — demonstrated by removing his ring finger and surrendering his wedding ring, and an agreement to return to the New York Continental to kill Winston.
The Continental
The Continental is more than just a hotel for the criminal underworld. It’s an entire network of facilities and services that enable assassins to do their job. Of the two rules in this underworld, one of them applies specifically to The Continental: no business on Continental grounds. While most assassins like John Wick and Cassian (played by Common), or Zero (Mark Dacascos) strictly adhere to this rule, not everyone is so honorable, as we see Ms. Perkins (Adrianne Palicki) killed for violating this rule in the first movie.
While the High Table is a supreme authority in most cases, The Continental is an autonomous organization, and its various branch managers — Winston in New York, Julius in Rome, Sofia in Morocco, and Shimazu in Tokyo - have complete authority over Continental business. In fact, Winston even has a history of pushing back against The High Table. The John Wick universe explained with The Continental ending that Winston came into power at the hotel after killing the 1970s Adjudicator.
The Continental’s concierge can provide for almost any needs for their exclusive clientele. Most locations even board pets — just not in the New York branch. That said, the concierge, Charon (Lance Reddick) seems to make an exception after taking a liking to John Wick's new dog. In the John Wick spinoff about the Continental, more will be revealed about the various Continental hotel locations in John Wick.
Administration
In the world of John Wick, Administration is where all business under the table gets done. In layman's terms, they handle the paperwork. Responsible for the management of record keeping and personnel files, Administration records and posts rewards for particular kills and sends them out to assassins in the field to collect. Administration also manages personnel records and is responsible for processing John Wick's excommunicado status when Winston makes the call. As the High Table's bureaucratic arm, it is often through the Administration that the John Wick movies reveal the true extent of the High Table's power.
The Library
The Library is a facility that appears to be a normal library, but the John Wick universe explained with John Wick: Chapter 3 Parabellum that it functions as a sort of safe repository. John Wick provides the title and publishing information of a particular book to the librarian, and she then directs him to a specific shelf where he finds his book. Inside the book are several personal possessions, including some gold coins, a rosary, and a photo of him and his wife Helen.
The Ruska Roma
The Ruska Roma in John Wick is an organization of Russian gypsies that trains children to be assassins, with fundamental focuses on wrestling and ballet. In the outrageous world of John Wick, one thing makes the Ruska Roma stand out. Run by The Director (Anjelica Huston), the Ruska Roma is where John Wick grew up, under his birth name, Jardani Jovonovich. An apparently strictly Orthodox Christian organization, John Wick presents the director with his rosary beads and crucifix to claim a debt owed him as the last member of his tribe.
The Ruska Roma agrees to give him safe passage to Casablanca, in exchange for his Crucifix. The rosary beads are then removed from the Crucifix, which is heated and used to brand John Wick's back, a marking that shows he has forfeited his membership. John even visited the Ruska Roma headquarters in Berlin where the organization still hangs people. More about John's history will be revealed in the Ruska Roma-centered John Wick spinoff Ballerina.
Jardani Jovonovich: John Wick's Real Name & Origin Explained
John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum reveals plenty of new details about John Wick's backstory, including his real name and origin. Here's how.Adjudicators
Adjudicators are the High Table's less violent enforcers and function almost as mouthpieces for the High Table's will, and ensure they have eyes where needed. Adjudicators are dispatched to review situations, refresh individuals of the High Table's rules, and facilitate any disciplinary actions or other deals that need to be made. The Adjudicators carry a special dark coin they show to anyone under the High Table to reveal their status and authority, seemingly functioning as a normal gold coin, only they don't have to surrender it in return for services.
After John Wick kills Santino D'Antonio on Continental grounds and Winston gives him an hour head start before he makes John "excommunicado," The Adjudicator (Asia Kate Dillon) arrives to investigate and informs Winston he has seven days to get his affairs in order before being relieved of his post. After a show of force from Winston (via John Wick), the Adjudicator decides negotiations are merited and allows Winston to maintain his role as manager of The Continental after Winston proves his loyalty by shooting John Wick. A different Adjudicator appears in The Continental too, showing that it's a long-standing position under the High Table.
The Sommelier
A Sommelier is normally an expert in fine wines, offering customers advice on important matters like wine and food pairing. Naturally, a sommelier is one of the services provided by the Continental - but the John Wick universe explained that this particular wine shop is a front for a high-end armory. Through conversations with his clientele, the Sommelier identifies a client's “dinner plans,” suggesting just the right weapon pairing to properly compliment every course, starting out with a light pairing of Austrian handguns before moving to a more substantial AR-15, followed by a "bold, robust, and accurate" Benelli shotgun, before wrapping up with a spring-loaded boot knife for dessert.
The Tailor
In The Continental, everyone is dressed to the nines. This is thanks to another of The Continental’s services, the Tailor. Found in the back room of a textile mill is a small shop where the Tailor makes bespoke suits for the underground world of John Wick. Not only are these suits made to order, but they include a lightweight armor lining that can stop a bullet at range. The Tailor provides his services for both men and women in a variety of styles and can even produce a same-day turnaround.
Why John Wick Always Wears A Suit & Tie
John Wick is usually seen wearing a suit and tie in the John Wick franchise, and his attire is a core part of who he is as an assassin.The Cartographer
Behind a false bookcase in a small bookstore is The Continental’s Cartographer. The Cartographer’s map collection is full of both ancient diagrams and modern blueprints, detailing the layout of countless locations in the world of John Wick. The Cartographer reviews his clientele’s travel plans and helps to provide all the logistical data necessary for their missions. In addition to these manuscripts and documents, the John Wick universe explained that the Cartographer can also provide the keys necessary to access certain areas, aiding John Wick in gaining covert access to the Red Square concert venue in the Roman Colosseum.
The Pawnbroker
Before traveling to Rome, John Wick visits a small pawnshop run by an Orthodox Jew, the Pawnbroker. This pawn shop is a front for a secure bank of safety deposit boxes for the dangerous operatives in the world of John Wick. The Pawnbroker accepts Wick’s account number, allowing him access to his box, where he has a spare suit, weapons, gold coins, and a passport, so he can leave the country. Some assassins may have small stashes stored in various banks around the world to ensure they can access important resources in an emergency.
The Cleaners
Killing can be messy work, especially in the gory world of John Wick. Since getting rid of bodies safely can be a risky task, The Cleaners make themselves available to dispose of bodies and clean up the scene for just one gold coin per body. Using a Waste Disposal company as a front, the Cleaners are punctual, quick, and efficient, usually leaving little to no trace of bloodshed when they're done. The bodies are then likely taken to the basement of The Continental where they can be disposed of in a giant furnace.
The Doctor
While the doctor, or "Doc," makes house calls, such as when he visited John Wick in the Continental shortly after John first came out of retirement, he also has his own secret facility where he has a much larger selection of tools, equipment, and medications. Though he doesn't offer the same support as a full-fledged hospital, Doc still has an impressive array of skills and services, plus the added benefit of secrecy and protection from any rival assassins seeking to get to his patient. Like other High Table services, Doc cannot serve anyone who has been "excommunicado."
The Bowery
After experiencing mercy at the hands of a younger John Wick, The Bowery King (played by Lawrence Fishbourne) rose through the ranks to become the head of a vast network of intelligence operatives, covering almost every corner of New York City. This network relies largely on agents in the guise of homeless panhandlers, using access to the city’s underground tunnels and passageways to quickly move about with ease. The Bowery King also manages a flock of homing pigeons, used for secure delivery of messages or other small objects. Keeping these communications off of the phone lines ensures an additional level of secrecy.
Markers
A crucial artifact in the John Wick universe, a marker is a small round object indicating the debt of a blood oath between two individuals. Opening in the middle to reveal a divided surface, the debtor presses a bloody thumbprint on one side to commit an oath is owed, while the indebted likewise presses their bloody thumb to the other side to indicate when an oath has been fulfilled. When John Wick wanted to get out of the business to marry Helen, he was first assigned an “impossible task.”
In order to succeed, John gave a blood oath to Santino D’Antonio, the influential brother of one of the 12 members of the High Table, in return for his aid. After John comes back from retirement to seek vengeance on Viggo Tarasov, Santino calls in the oath. Desiring to take his sister’s place at the table, D’Antonio has John Wick assassinate her to satisfy his commitment. Records of blood oaths are registered and tracked by The Continental, under the supervision of Winston. He tracks the issuance and redemption of blood oaths in his own record book.
John Wick's Blood Oath Explained
John Wick: Chapter Two continued to build on the lore of the first movie with John's blood oath to Santino D'Antonio. Here's what you need to know.Gold Coins
The currency used in the underworld is mostly gold coins, crafted by a coin maker with the coin press that was seen in The Continental. While their use is universal in this criminal society, there is not a consistent exchange rate. A single coin can be exchanged for any single good or service, be it a knife, an AR-15, a single night at The Continental, clean-up and disposal of one dead body, or a single bar tab. This may be to establish an even playing field among all assassins in which the value of a coin is determined by the skill of the owner instead of pure volume of wealth.
As described by Berrada, who oversees their creation, gold coins are a physical manifestation of a social contract. Despite the reliance on gold coins, assassination contracts are assigned a value designated in US dollars, possibly emphasizing that value is based on the individual. This would suggest that while almost any good or service can be exchanged for a fixed value of one coin, the value of a human life is a variable amount.
John Wick: What's The Actual Value Of A Gold Coin?
The mercenaries of the John Wick universe use their old gold coin currency, but how much is each piece worth in the Keanu Reeves movie franchise?The Mint
The Mint is a location in Morocco where all the High Table's gold coins originate. Run by the former manager of the Morrocan Continental, Berrada (Jerome Flynn), The Mint oversees the production and distribution of the High Table's primary (exclusive) currency. More future John Wick spin-offs may reveal more about how the Mint began and how long assassins in the world of John Wick have exchanged services for gold coins.
The Marquis
John Wick: Chapter 4 introduces a couple of important figures working for The High Table, most notably Marquis Vincent de Gramont. After Wick eliminates The Elder, the Marquis ascends rapidly within the organization, targeting the New York Continental and John himself. The character is seemingly the most powerful person working for The High Table, as he's given more authority than the Adjudicator and was granted vast authority and resources by The High Table's members. The character is able to authorize increased bounties on assassins too.
The Harbinger
In the John Wick: Chapter 4 cast, The Harbinger is a representative of Marquis Vincent de Gramont and an operative of The High Table. Dispatched to the New York Continental by the Marquis, The Harbinger announces the hotel's impending destruction and later supervises the planning of the duel and the final face-off between Caine and John. While the character ultimately works for The High Table, The Harbinger actually appears relatively impartial compared to the likes of the Adjudicator and the Marquis. The Harbinger survives in the movie, and he could appear in future John Wick projects.