Ballerina star Catalina Sandino Moreno helped break down that big surprise twist at the end of the recent John Wick spin-off film. The movie follows Ana de Armas' Eve Macarro, a ballerina assassin looking to make her mark in the underground criminal world by taking out her vengeance against the people who killed her father.
In the final act, it's revealed that Moreno's Lena, another assassin hunting Eve, is actually her long-lost sister. This reveal upends both of the sisters' entire perspectives on their lives and their situation—one that quickly turns deadly, with Lena losing her life to an explosion. The Direct spoke with Moreno in an exclusive interview, where she explained how "everything changes" for Lena the moment she learns who Eve Macarro is.
Ballerina, directed by Len Wiseman and distributed by Lionsgate, is playing in theaters worldwide.
Ballerina Star Catalina Sandino Moreno Explains Big Sister Twist
"I Think Something That Moves Every Human Being Is Family
- The Direct: "You play Lena, who is eventually revealed to be Eve's long-lost sister. What clues do you think audiences might have missed earlier in the movie that hinted towards this?"
Catalina Sandino Moreno: Nothing. They're not gonna think about that. They're not gonna even know that that's coming because it's impossible to put two and two together if you haven't watched the film. You'd start the film with, you know, Eve being a child with her father, and the father hinting, saying, you look so much like your sister. But you will never think that this assassin who shows up in Hallstatt is actually her sister. So, I think people are going to be as surprised as I was while I was reading the script.
- The Direct: "What is Lena thinking in that moment when all is revealed? What goes through her head?"
Catalina Sandino Moreno: Well, I think something that moves every human being is family. I think that it's a yearning that she's never had a family. Her father abandoned her with her mother. The mother died, and now she is looking up to this Chancellor that has a cult.
But she never had that family, that mom, dad, sister, dog—she never had that family system. And when she finally knows that this woman that she's trying to get is her sister, everything changes. And that's when she turns and starts thinking for herself.
- The Direct: "How did your character's story develop? Did it change a lot from the beginning of the process to what we've gotten in the final version?"
Catalina Sandino Moreno: It changed, but very, very little. There are no bigger changes. I feel that the core of the character has always been there. But, yeah, it changed slightly, but the core has always been there.
- The Direct: "Sadly, not long after this reveal, you do perish. Was there ever a world where we got to see you live longer and kick some ass alongside Ana de Armas?"
Catalina Sandino Moreno: I don't know. There's always a chance. You know, you're in the 'John Wick' world. You never know.
- The Direct: "How [much of a conversation] did you have with Ana [de Armas] about building that screen time that you guys do share together as siblings? What were those conversations?
Catalina Sandino Moreno: We didn't talk about that. We didn't talk about what's gonna happen, we're just gonna ease into it. Let's see what happens. Explore. And it came out nicely.
The full interview can be seen below:
Be sure to check out The Direct's interview with Ballerina star Ana de Armas, where she teases the possibility of her assassin returning for John Wick 5.
