How Many Episodes Are In The Continental?

"The Continental" warps audiences all the way back to the 1970s, into the world of "John Wick" before the titular character was much more than a twinkle in the High Table's eye. Over the span of a three-episode miniseries, viewers spend time with the show's very familiar-looking cast. Then-financier Winston Scott (Colin Woodell) will eventually run the titular high-class hotel for assassins and become a mentor figure to John Wick (Keanu Reeves) himself. 

Scott has different plans for his life before claiming ownership of the grand hotel; deciding to move to London to advance his career, he is stopped by the thievery of his brother Frankie (Ben Robson). Frankie has stolen a valuable coin press from the vault of a safe house called The Continental. The coin press is a priceless object belonging to a powerful syndicate head (Mel Gibson) who will do anything to regain it. That forces Winston to marshal all of his experience to help him retrieve it. Along the way, Scott finds a true destiny — in refurbishing The Continental into a grand oasis of peace in the assassin world. 

With the first episode clocking in at nearly an hour and a half of screen time, it appears that the final miniseries will pack in two whole feature-length films worth of entertainment into one show. The series — helmed by directors Albert Hughes and Charlotte Brändström instead of longtime franchise head Chad Stahelski — has been receiving lukewarm reviews from critics. But Hughes, for one, seems willing to accept the slings and arrows of those who are disappointed that the show feels different than the film series for a chance to put his own mark on the franchise.

Director Albert Hughes said at a press conference attended by MovieWeb that he and Charlotte Brändström deliberately set out to craft their own tale with "The Continental." That absolutely meant creating completely unique ideas from Winston Scott's wide-open backstory. It's a fearsome task for any director, but Hughes seemed to be up for it.

"I would never want to disrespect by copying, and that's not who I am. They didn't hire me for that. There are plenty of no-talent directors that, if they wanted to push around, they could do that. The truth is there is not enough talent to go around. If they wanted, the copy would have done that. They told me from the start, which I really love, that it was filmmaker-driven," explained Hughes at the time.

Thus — with Peacock committed to creating their vision with the show — Hughes said he was encouraged to go his own way with the material and bring his ideas to the plate. Viewers must wait until September 29 to witness the next part of "The Continental" and see what direction he's chosen.