"John Wick" might never have gone on to become a billion-dollar-grossing film franchise if not for the financial intervention of Eva Longoria, the original film's directors revealed this week.
In an interview with Business Insider for the film's 10th anniversary, Chad Stahelski and David Leitch — who directed the film together, despite only Leitch receiving a credit — said that the Keanu Reeves action flick was mere days away from having to shut down production due to a lack of funding.
"We were less than a week out and we lost almost $6 million on a gap financing," Stahelski told the publication. "We had all put in everything, including Keanu. And we were still short. So we were shut down."
In a last ditch effort to save the production, CAA offered a number of its actors the chance to finance the remaining $6 million with the promise that they would be the first to be paid back once the film hit theaters.
Longoria reportedly took CAA up on the opportunity, though Leitch and Stahelski didn't know it at the time.
"She came to the rescue and she provided the gap financing," Stahelski said. "Literally less than 24 hours before we had to lock the doors on the movie and walk away, [our producer] said 'We've got the investor, we've locked the gap.'"
Money Report
Following the film's box office success — it grossed $86 million on its estimated budget of $20 million to $30 million — the directors took Longoria out for lunch in Los Angeles as a thank you.
Leitch said he ran into the actress last year at awards season events and that the two reminisced about her financial intervention.
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"She was like, 'Wow, that was the best money I've ever spent,'" he said. "It paid back significantly for her."
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