- "I'm not afraid of John Wick!"
- —Iosef before John Wick starts hunting him.
Iosef Tarasov (Russian: Иосиф Тарасов) is the overarching antagonist of the John Wick franchise. He was a Russian mobster, the son of Russian crime lord Viggo Tarasov, and the nephew of Abram Tarasov. After Iosef assaulted John Wick, stole his car, and killed his dog, his actions became the death of him and triggered a chain of events that forced John back into his former assassin life. He is the secondary antagonist of John Wick.
Biography[]
Background[]
Iosef was the only known child of the Russian crime lord Viggo Tarasov, and was involved with his father's crime organization. At some point, he got involved in a fiasco in Atlantic City.
John Wick[]
- "Everything's got a price, bitch"
- —Iosef Tarasov to John Wick
Iosef's first appearance in the gas station
Iosef begins his involvement with John Wick by meeting him at a gas station with his friends Victor and Gregori; he admires Wick's car, banging on the hood before ignorantly asking how much he wanted for it. John stated that the vehicle isn't for sale, to which Iosef responds in Russian, "Everything's got a price, bitch". Upon hearing John respond "Not this bitch" in Russian, Iosef seemingly becomes irritated, leaning into the car before being pulled away by Victor.
That night, Iosef, Victor and Gregori proceeded to break into John's house, where they beat up John and stole his car, right after Iosef killed John's pet puppy Daisy. John was horrified by this because Daisy was the last present of his deceased wife and angrily vowed to avenge his dog's death by killing Iosef.
Iosef, Gregori and Victor later brought the Mustang to a mechanic named Aurelio to have the car modified but Aurelio questioned Viggo's son about who and where he stole it from. Iosef was oblivious to the danger he is currently faced with and does not hesitate to mock Aurelio, stating that the Tarasov Mob owned his company. Aurelio asked Iosef whether or not he killed John before punching him in the face upon hearing that they had not only left him alive, but also given him reasons to come after them. Aurelio demanded they leave his shop — Iosef complied, but not before threatening him.
Hunted Down[]
- "Iosef: Are you scared of the fucking boogeyman? I'm not.
Kirill: No? But you should be." - —Iosef and Kirill
Iosef is warned by Viggo about John.
As such, Viggo angrily berated Iosef in the gang's headquarters for provoking John and punched him twice in the stomach for it, but Iosef refused to care, attempting to convince his father to give him a chance to finish off John only to be swiftly dismissed and warned by Viggo that the boogeyman will eventually come for and kill him. Viggo initially attempted to reason out John out of getting revenge but to no avail in which the latter silently refused, leading Viggo to send a 12-man hit squad to John's house to kill him only for John to successfully eliminate them, which resulted in the Russian crime boss placing a bounty on Wick's head, which caused some of the Continental Hotel's assassins to hunt down John, amongst them being Marcus and Ms. Perkins. Meanwhile, Viggo had Iosef secured at his nightclub, The Red Circle with his chief of security, Kirill, and his henchmen protecting him.
Iosef at his private bathtub party in the Red Circle.
At the club, Iosef and his friends partied in a hot tub before Kirill arrived to serve as his bodyguard. Iosef stated that despite the imminent threat, he was not afraid of "the Boogeyman". Kirill reminded him that he should be, a statement that is proved to be true by John himself as he bursts into the club, forcing Iosef to flee and thereby revealing his fear. He escaped the club in nothing but a bath towel, phoning Victor only to be answered by John, who reminded him of his previous statement, "Everything's got a price".
Death[]
- "It was just a fuck'n-"
- —Iosef's last words before John Wick executes him
John executing Iosef without hesitation.
While holding Viggo at gunpoint, John learned that Iosef was hidden in a safehouse in Brooklyn and took out Gregori, Ivan, and all of the guards. Alexander and another bodyguard attempted to flee with Iosef by car but were shot and the cars were blown up. A terrified Iosef tried to run but gets shot in the stomach. Injured, he sunk to the floor as John approached. Iosef tried to save himself by convincing John that it was "just a fuckin' dog" he just killed, but the hitman angrily ignored this and shot Iosef in the head before he could finish his sentence, killing him and avenging Daisy's death.
Personality[]
- "You've got a fuckin' pair on you old man!"
- —Iosef Tarasov to Aurelio
Iosef faces Aurelio
Iosef was very arrogant, headstrong, vain, and self-entitled. He was also exceptionally petty and cruel. His relationship with the Tarasov Mob, especially given that his father was the leader of the group, led him to become spoiled and overindulgent, though he is shown to be entrusted and competent to an extent with his duties to the Mob. When Viggo described John to him, he offhandedly implied that Iosef was weak-willed, unfocused, and incapable of commitment.
Iosef 's pettiness and cruelty was so defining, he did not accept being disrespected and denied what he wanted, even by someone he just met. To which, he was willing to go to great lengths to have the last laugh on people he disliked. This also showed a shameless and reckless nature, as he was unaware of John's previous association to the Tarasov Mob, and how incredibly dangerous John was upon crossing paths. Though initially believing he can take on John, he was quick to lose this notion upon Viggo making it clear to him how serious the situation was.
Iosef terrified of John
Over time, Iosef was shown to be more and more frightened and cowardly during John's pursuit of him. As the pampered heir to the Tarasov fortune, Iosef has little combat training, never once fighting fairly but rather picking on those that he can (such as a prone John Wick during the Break-In). His fear also becomes evident during combat situations, using a bystander as a human shield while fleeing the Red Circle club. In his final moments, he desperately tried to reason with John, despite knowing how much John hated him, showing a true fear of death.
Gallery[]
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Trivia[]
- Iosef is widely considered to be the most hated villain in the John Wick series due to him killing Daisy, which was John's last gift from his deceased wife and is a subject of animal abuse.
- Iosef is the Greater-Scope Villain and the catalyst for the entire John Wick series, as his killing of Daisy forced John back into action, which in turn resulted in the following action of the other movies, this makes him the overarching antagonist of the series.
- During Iosef's final moments, before getting shot by John, Iosef's last words in Russian translate to "It was just a fuck'n-''. But what he actually said to John is ''Go fuck yourself!" (''иди на хуй!'').
- He has tattoos of Russian phrases and symbols on his arms and upper body.
References[]