YES, AHHHHHHHHH

Haven't seen 4 yet. I have seen the first 3 and the story gradually builds. I would definitely say it is important to see them all.

Yes

I think they are all totally worth the watch, and the escalation of events and impacts of certain moments in this movie hit harder if you’ve seen the first three. But if you just want to see crazy action at it’s finest, which is the main drawing point, then it’s probably fine to only watch 4. But again, I’d highly recommend the others.

I feel like this question is kinda like asking “I’m not into reading but I hear chapter 4 of this book is great, can I just skip ahead and read that chapter?” I mean your could, but it’s literally called John Wick chapter 4. The clue seems in the title for this one.

as others have said, the world and lore of john wick's world builds as each film goes on so its pretty crucial to watch the others first really

The entire series is a giant story. You can watch 4 for the action, but you'll be missing a ton of backstory by not watching the first 3

It will provide you with background and context that you would need to know going in. To understand how we got this far is kinda important.

Lots of movie sequels are self-contained in a way that book chapters really aren't, which is why I asked. But it looks like the consensus is that's not the case here.

I was mostly being flippant to get a chuckle. You do you- kinda fun to experience movies in a different order. Maybe working your way backwards gives a whole different experience! (Report back if you do!)