Ian McShane is a regular in the John Wick films and for many a household name, whether you recognise him from running the Wick universe’s Continental hotel, as Al Swearengen in HBO’s Deadwood or, for anyone who grew up in the 80s, as TV's swarthy antiques dealer, Lovejoy.
Unfortunately, Lovejoy hasn’t quite had the same lasting impact that McShane has, as the character is now largely unknown to many who didn’t grow up with the show.
However, after speaking with the actor recently while he is promoting Ballerina, a spin-off movie in the John Wick cinematic universe starring Ana de Armas and Norman Reedus, he revealed that he’s been asked about a potential return to Lovejoy. What might excite fans is that he isn’t against the show returning, although he wants it to be different.
Instead of him returning as the titular character, McShane thinks it's time for someone else to take on the responsibility, and he already has an idea as to who.
“They keep asking me to come back and do a Lovejoy series. I said, ‘get a girl to do it.’ It’s like with Ana [in Ballerina], you need that demographic now. It would be great.”
McShane even expanded on this idea with how it could work on the show, going on to add, “[Lovejoy] had a daughter. So why don’t they do that?”
You can catch McShane talking about the idea in our exclusive interview clip, embedded above.
It certainly would make for an interesting return to the role, and although he didn’t mention picking up the mantle again himself, a new lead taking on the role with the old Lovejoy potentially swinging by now and again as something of a mentor wouldn’t be the worst thing.
With more shows and films being rebooted all the time, now could be the time to bring Lovejoy back… after all, if Top Gun can return, why not the UK's favourite antiques-dealing rogue?
You'll next see McShane in Ballerina, released on the 6th June. It follows Ana de Armas as she rips through the John Wick universe hellbent on revenge, with a few familiar faces popping by to say hello. We'll have more from our interview with the cast soon, so check back for more exclusive interviews around the John Wick universe while we set up that 'BRING BACK LOVEJOY' petition.
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