In 2005, the world was introduced to Constantine, a dark, moody, and brutally philosophical supernatural thriller that defied expectations and slowly cemented its status as a cult classic. At the center of this hellish noir tale stood Keanu Reeves, brooding and chain-smoking as John Constantine â a man cursed with the ability to see angels and demons walking among us.
Now, nearly two decades later, Reeves returns in Constantine 2 (2025) â and this time, the stakes are even more diabolical.
A Long-Awaited Resurrection
Fans have begged, pleaded, and campaigned for years to bring Keanu Reeves back into the trench coat and chain-smoking snarl of Constantine. For a long time, Warner Bros. kept silent, unsure if the character had a place in the modern superhero-saturated landscape.
But Reeves never gave up hope.
And now, in 2025, that persistence pays off â Constantine 2 is not just real, itâs intense, haunting, and shockingly relevant.
The Return of a Reluctant Hero
In this chilling sequel, John Constantine is older, wearier, and more broken than ever. Time has not been kind to the exorcist and occult detective. His reputation as a reckless, damned soul remains intact â but the burden of his past sins weighs heavier than before.
When a primordial evil force begins to rise â not just from hell, but from a dimension beyond comprehension â Constantine is called out of hiding. And not just to save humanity.
This time, his own soul is on the line.
A New Kind of Darkness
The first Constantine film explored religion, suicide, redemption, and the afterlife in a way few mainstream blockbusters dared to touch. But Constantine 2 goes even deeper.
This isn’t just about angels and demons. It’s about cosmic judgment, ancient prophecies, and the possibility that Constantineâs actions in the past may have triggered a cataclysmic imbalance.
The film taps into dark spiritual themes: the silence of God, the rising of fallen gods, and the collapse of spiritual order as Constantine travels to places never shown before â both physically and metaphysically.
Keanu Reeves: Colder, Crueler, and Still Magnetic
Thereâs something magnetic about Keanu Reevesâ portrayal of Constantine. Heâs not flashy. Heâs not kind. Heâs not even likeable most of the time.
And yet⊠we root for him.
In this second film, Reeves delivers what many are calling his most tortured performance yet. Constantine is a man at the end of his rope. There is no redemption in his eyes â only obligation, only vengeance, only the faintest flicker of hope.
Heâs willing to burn everything to save everyone â even if it means destroying himself in the process.
The Villain: A Force Older Than Lucifer
While the first film gave us a chilling Peter Stormare as Lucifer, Constantine 2 ups the ante.
This time, the antagonist isnât just a demon. Itâs something Lucifer himself fears.
An ancient entity sealed before the dawn of creation â known only as “The First Hunger” â breaks free from its prison. This evil doesnât want to rule hell. It wants to devour existence itself, consuming the balance between heaven and hell and reducing the soul to ash.
Only Constantine has seen the signs. And only he can stop it â with the help of some familiar faces… and a few dangerous new ones.
The Return of Old Allies and Ghosts
Rachel Weisz is rumored to make a surprising reappearance â not just as Angela Dodson, but also as her twin sister Isabel, in a terrifying spiritual twist.
Tilda Swintonâs Gabriel? Not gone. Not forgiven. But possibly useful.
Even Chas Kramer, thought long gone, returns â but not quite as he once was.
The film doesn’t just bring back characters. It reopens old wounds, and forces Constantine to confront every death, betrayal, and failure from the first film.
Visuals Straight From the Depths of Damnation
Visually, Constantine 2 is nothing short of breathtaking. The hellscape Reeves walks through this time is worse than before, drenched in fireless light and infinite suffering.
Heaven, too, is shown â but not as a place of peace. It is silent, distant, and perhaps complicit in the balance tipping toward ruin.
Director Francis Lawrence (who returns from the original) uses stark contrasts, haunting practical effects, and dreamlike horror to paint a world teetering on oblivion.
The World Needs Constantine Now More Than Ever
In a time when audiences are growing tired of capes, multiverses, and sanitized heroes, Constantine 2 offers a darker, dirtier, more visceral alternative.
Itâs a film not afraid to question faith, to walk through fire, to show that sometimes the hero is the one willing to damn himself so others can be saved.
Reevesâ Constantine doesnât want praise. He doesnât want forgiveness. He just wants to finish what he started.
A Standalone, Yet Expansive Universe
Unlike most modern franchises, Constantine 2 isnât setting up sequels, spinoffs, or connected universes â at least not overtly.
This is a character story. A descent into chaos. A confrontation with the past, the future, and the unknowable.
Yet if it succeeds (and early buzz says it will), fans may see more from this grim corner of the DC universe. After all, Zatanna, The Spectre, and Deadman are just a spell away.
Closing Thoughts: Constantine’s Final War?
Constantine 2 isnât just a sequel. Itâs an exorcism of a genre grown bloated and safe. It’s a dark prayer for the lost. It’s Keanu Reeves reminding the world why we feared â and loved â this tortured soul all along.
Will this be Constantineâs final war? Or just the beginning of something even darker?