New York, 6 June

Years before Ana de Armas was using an ice skate to slice a neck in ‘From the World of John Wick: Ballerina’, she co-starred with Keanu Reeves in a much different film.

The erotic thriller ‘Knock Knock’, released in 2015, was de Armas' first Hollywood film. De Armas, born and raised in Cuba, had just come to Los Angeles after acting in Spain. English was new to her, so she had to learn her lines phonetically.

“It was tough and I felt miserable at times and very lonely,” she says in an interview. “But I wanted to prove myself. I remember being in meetings with producers and they would be like, OK, I'll see you in a year when you learn English.' Before I left the office, I would say, I'll see you in two months.'”

Since 'Knock Knock', her rise to stardom has been one of the last decade's most meteoric.

She was radiant even as a hologram in ‘Blade Runner 2049’. She stole the show in Rian Johnson's star-studded ‘Knives Out’. She breezed through the Bond movie ‘No Time to Die’. She was Oscar nominated for her Marilyn Monroe in ‘Blonde’.

And now, 10 years after those scenes with Reeves, de Armas is for the first time headlining a big summer action movie.

In ‘Ballerina’ de Armas' progressive development as an unlikely action star reaches a butt-kicking crescendo, inheriting the mantle of one of the most esteemed, high-body-count franchises.

“It's a big moment in my career, and I know that. I can see that,” she says. “It makes me look back in many ways, just being with Keanu in another film in such a different place in my career. It definitely gives me perspective of the journey and everything since we met. Things have come far since then.”

While de Armas, 37, isn't new to movie stardom, or the tabloid coverage that comes with it, many of her career highlights have been streaming releases.

‘The Gray Man’ and ‘Blonde’ were Netflix. ‘Ghosted’ was Apple TV+. But ‘Ballerina’ will rely on de Armas (and abiding ‘John Wick’ fandom) to put moviegoers in seats.

Heading in, analysts expected an opening weekend of around USD 35-40 million, which would be a solid result for a spinoff that required extensive reshoots. Reviews, particularly for de Armas playing a ballerina-assassin, have been good.

“There's a lot of pressure,” says director Len Wiseman. “It's a lot to carry all on her shoulders. But she'll be the first person to tell you: Put it on. Let me carry the weight. I'm totally game.'”