Keanu Reeve's 'John Wick' film content will be woven into a Payday 2 online game episode

Filmmakers Lionsgate and Thunder Road Pictures are collaborating with game studio Starbreeze Studios to put content from John Wick, the latest Keanu Reeves film, in an episode of the online bank heist game Payday 2.

The deal shows how films and games can cross-promote one other through clever marketing relationships that can come together for mutual benefit. It’s also interesting because happened in record time, said Peter Levin, president of interactive ventures and games at Lionsgate, in an interview with GamesBeat. It’s the latest of several game-related deals for Lionsgate, maker of The Hunger Games films.

Unlock premium content and VIP community perks with GB M A X! Join now to enjoy our free and premium perks. 

Join now →

Sign in to your account.

Dean Takahashi

Dean Takahashi is editorial director for GamesBeat. He has been a tech journalist since 1988, and he has covered games as a beat since 1996. He was lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat from 2008 to April 2025. Prior to that, he wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, the Red Herring, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Dallas Times-Herald. He is the author of two books, "Opening the Xbox" and "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked." He organizes the annual GamesBeat Next, GamesBeat Summit and GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games conferences and is a frequent speaker at gaming and tech events. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.