The John Wick universe is expanding, with a spinoff centred on fan-favourite blind assassin Caine set to begin production next month, and Donnie Yen will both direct and reprise the role.

The untitled Caine project, produced by Lionsgate, was first announced at CinemaCon last spring and will pick up where John Wick: Chapter 4 left off, following Caine after he is freed from his obligations to The High Table. 

Rina Sawayama, who played Akira in Chapter 4, is also returning opposite Yen.

The screenplay was written by Mattson Tomlin, whose recent credits include the upcoming The Batman Part II and the adaptation of Keanu Reeves’ comic book BRZRKR, with Michael McGrale also co-writing. 

The original John Wick producing team is back on board, including Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee and Chad Stahelski, who produces through his 87Eleven Entertainment banner. 

Reeves and John Saunders will also produce, with Yen serving as executive producer.

For Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson, the choice of subject was obvious. 

“It became clear after John Wick: Chapter 4 that fans were particularly intrigued by Caine, which made his story the most natural next chapter of the franchise,” he said.

“It’s truly exciting to be embarking on a strategic partnership with Donnie, he has the vision to bring to life this extension of the John Wick universe in a way that’s authentic to his own signature style, flair, and expertise as a filmmaker.”

Yen, who was born in Guangzhou, China and raised in Boston, is known for his action work across franchises including Ip Man, Star Wars: Rogue One and xXx: Return of Xander Cage. 

He brings a formidable directing CV to the project too, with credits including Sakra and The Prosecutor, which holds a 94 per cent critical score on Rotten Tomatoes. 

His stunt choreography, a hallmark of his previous work, will feature prominently in Caine.

Yen has spoken about what drew him to the character and the opportunity. 

“What drew me to Caine is the contradiction. He carries love, responsibility, and sacrifice in a world built on consequence. That creates a very different kind of action hero,” he said. 

He described his ambitions for the film in sweeping terms, adding: “My goal is to create the most definitive martial arts-infused action film ever made, one that honors what audiences love about John Wick while bringing a new emotional depth and visual language to the story.”

John Wick: Chapter 4 remains the highest-grossing entry in the franchise, taking in over $447 million worldwide.

Keith Urban has reportedly taken on a cruise ship performance to help cover costs following his high-profile divorce from Nicole Kidman, the kind of booking, sources say, he would never have considered during their 19-year marriage.

The country star performed at the Top Shelf Country Cruise, sailing from Florida to the Bahamas between 27 February and 6 March. 

An insider told New Idea that the gig was very much a practical decision.

“Cruise ships are not exactly the dream gig, but they pay the bills — and it gives Keith something to focus on,” the source said. 

“It’s the kind of gig that Keith would have turned his nose up at during his marriage to Nicole Kidman. He’s trying to stay busy now that his divorce is finalised.”

Urban, 58, has a reported net worth of $75 million, but those close to him have suggested that divorce lawyer fees may have put a dent in his cash flow. 

With Kidman’s reported net worth sitting at $250 million, the financial stakes of the split were considerable. 

“When there’s that much money involved in a split, the lawyers don’t come cheap, regardless of the outcome,” the source explained, adding that smaller bookings help keep things ticking over in the meantime.

Longer term, though, the picture is said to be more positive. 

Urban is reportedly working on “exciting plans” for the second half of 2026, with the source saying he “has every intention of ending 2026 the exact opposite of how it started, on a total high.”

Page Six confirmed in September that Urban and Kidman had separated after nearly two decades together. 

Kidman filed for divorce the day after the news broke, citing irreconcilable differences. 

The divorce was finalised in January, with both parties waiving rights to child and spousal support. 

Kidman was approved as the primary residential parent for their two daughters, Sunday Rose, 17, and Faith Margaret, 14.

Kidman has spoken briefly about the situation, telling Variety earlier this month: “We are a family, and that’s what we’ll continue to be.”

Scientists from a private space company are planning a controversial yet daring move to land on a dangerous asteroid as it leaps past Earth in three years’ time.

The space rock, dubbed Apophis, was first discovered in 2004 and is expected to make a close pass by Earth in 2029.

Previous calculations suggested a 2.7 percent chance of the asteroid colliding with Earth and potentially destroying an area nearly the size of a city.

However, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) scientists ruled out the potential risk of any impact for the foreseeable future.

The United States (U.S.)-based company ExLabs announced ambitious plans to send two landers to attempt a touchdown on the space rock as it passes nearly 32,000km from Earth.

Co-founder and Chief Science Officer Miguel Pascual said: “The main goal is to gain images from the surface of the asteroid,” adding, “There’s some really exciting science that can happen.”

ExLabs said that its mothership spacecraft, scheduled for launch in 2028, will carry 10 spacecraft, including two landers.

The space company plans to deploy a lander the size of a shoe box, which will continue taking pictures as it descends at a speed of 10 centimeters per second. The lander is expected to attempt a touchdown within an hour of deployment.

For context, a lander is a type of spacecraft designed to descend from orbit, pass through an atmosphere (if present), and make a soft, controlled landing on the surface of a celestial body.

To ensure Earth’s safety and no change in the asteroid’s orbit, ExLabs plans to execute the mission a week after Apophis’s flyby of Earth.