Keanu Reeves and Chad Stahelski are thinking about taking a break from John Wick

Chad Stahelski, director of the John Wick films, has spoken about what the upcoming John Wick: Chapter 4 means for the franchise, as well as for him personally.

Speaking in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he said: "In our minds Keanu and I are done for the moment. We're going to give John Wick a rest. I'm sure the studio has a plan.

"If everyone loves it and it goes kooky, then we'll take a quiet minute. Wicks always, for some weird reason, always gets the latest release date in Japan. It's always like, three months later. If it's the same this time, we'll do a Japanese tour and release the movie in September. Keanu and I will take a long trip to Tokyo, we'll sit in the Imperial Hotel Scotch Bar and go 'What do you think?' We'll have a couple 20-year-old whiskies and write some ideas on napkins. If those ideas stick, maybe we'll make a movie."

Stahelski spoke about how intense working on the John Wick franchise has been, and whether it has restricted him from working on other projects.

He said: "The Wicks are so intense, and I like being part of all of it. I've tried to be the multitasker director - prepping one thing while working on another - but I can't. That's why they start stacking up."

Stahelski reminisced about how far the franchise had come and reflected on an iconic moment from the first entry.

Stahelski said: "Killing the puppy was written out as many times as it was written back in. Ultimately, it's mythological. We had to go so overboard, so extreme to push it to let you know that it was absolutely symbolic. We're trying not to hold the realism. We want the viewers to know we're having a laugh. But you don't even know how much Dave [David Leitch] and I stressed about that."

John Wick: Chapter 4 releases in cinemas on March 24.