For three weeks this summer, Hong Kong got to play itself in one of the biggest action franchises on the planet. Donnie Yen — Hong Kong’s own martial arts icon — has been directing and starring in ‘Caine’, the John Wick spin-off built around the blind assassin he introduced in ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’, and he insisted on bringing the cameras home to do it.
What exactly is ‘Caine’?
‘Caine’ is the sixth feature (seventh installment overall) in the John Wick franchise, distributed by Lionsgate and produced by the series’ usual heavyweights: Thunder Road Films’ Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee, alongside Chad Stahelski’s 87Eleven Entertainment and Summit Entertainment. Yen co-wrote the story with Stahelski, with a screenplay from Robert Askins and Mattson Tomlin. Picking up chronologically after Chapter 4, it follows Caine now that he’s free of his obligations to the High Table.
The cast reads like a genuine event: Rina Sawayama returns as Akira, joined by Bill Nighy, Dacre Montgomery, Mason Thames, Zhuang Dafei, Jacky Heung and Julius Brian Siswojo, shot by cinematographer Markus Förderer. Principal photography began 25 April in Budapest — most of the story is set in Europe — before the production landed in Hong Kong in late June for a Caine-specific chapter of the story.
The Hong Kong location map
Film-spotters have been busy. Confirmed stops include the Big Buddha and Tai O fishing village on Lantau, Tsing Shan Monastery in Tuen Mun (where Yen and Jacky Heung filmed on 6 July), the Hong Kong Palace Museum in West Kowloon (shot 8 July, on the museum’s regular closing day), and Hollywood Road in Central, where Yen and Mason Thames filmed on 9 July.
The bigger spectacle, though, unfolded after dark in Mong Kok and Yau Ma Tei. Night shoots ran roughly 6pm to 3am along Changsha Street, Portland Street and Temple Street, with police-style vehicles, costumed performers and full lion-dance processions turning the neon-lit streets into a set piece. On 13 July, Portland Street hosted a triad funeral scene, with the Hong Kong Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui dressed up as the funeral home. Temple Street’s famous night market operated under filming restrictions until 21 July — worth knowing if you were planning a visit.
Why Donnie Yen pushed to shoot at home
Asked about the decision, Yen has been candid that this was personal. “Most of the story takes place in Europe, but since I am also directing and it is about my character’s story, I need to show where he comes from,” he said. “So I strongly insist to include a part of the filming in Hong Kong.”
That framing matters: rather than a quick cameo backdrop, Hong Kong becomes part of Caine’s origin story — the city itself functions almost as a character, not just scenery for a fight scene.
The project was first announced at CinemaCon in April 2025, and with shooting wrapping across April to July 2026, a 2027 release looks likely, though Lionsgate hasn’t confirmed a date.
The details — for fans wanting to spot it
If you missed the shoots, the locations aren’t going anywhere. The Big Buddha, Tai O, Tsing Shan Monastery, the Hong Kong Palace Museum and Hollywood Road are all open to visitors year-round, now with genuine Hollywood cameo credentials to admire in person. Temple Street reopens fully to its usual night market bustle from 21 July.
For a city that regularly plays host to film crews but rarely gets billed this prominently in a franchise this size, ‘Caine’ is a rare full-circle moment — a Hollywood blockbuster shaped, in part, by the streets that shaped its star. Watch for the first trailer in the months ahead; until then, next time you’re wandering Temple Street after dark, you might just be standing where John Wick’s world met Hong Kong’s own.
