"That's Latin for you're fucked."

—Cormac O'Connor^[src]

Excommunicado is a state of a former Continental member after their privileges are revoked due to a severe infraction of the rules. When an individual is excommunicado, they lose all access to Continental services, including protection from other Continental members. This means the excommunicado may be killed without repercussions. It also appears to extend to the criminal underworld as a whole as the Ruska Roma got in trouble for helping John Wick and later cited it when he asked for their help against the Marquis Vincent Bisset de Gramont.

History

John Wick

After Ms. Perkins attempted to kill John Wick to collect a $2 million bounty on him by Viggo Tarasov at the New York Continental, she was eventually subdued by John, with Harry being tasked to guard her while she awaited punishment for her actions. However, she escaped and killed Harry. Later, Winston Scott declared her excommunicado for her actions and had her executed for doing business on Continental grounds.

John Wick: Chapter 2

"You killed a man on company grounds, Jonathan. You leave me no choice but to declare you excommunicado. The doors to any service or provider in connection with the Continental are now closed to you. I am so sorry. Your life is now forfeit."

—Winston to John Wick^[src]

John was rendered excommunicado by Winston after killing Santino D'Antonio on Continental grounds. However, John was given a one-hour grace period before his status was put into effect.

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum

John Wick spends the hour before his excommunicado goes into effect gathering the items that he will need for his plan to escape. It finally goes into effect as the Doctor is in the middle of treating John's wounds, forcing John to finish the job himself and non-fatally wound the Doctor to cover for his initial help of John.

John subsequently seeks out the Elder to get his excommunicado status and the bounty on his head lifted, which the Elder agrees to do in return for John returning to the High Table's service and killing Winston Scott for refusing to give up his position as manager of the New York Continental. After The Adjudicator deconsecrates the Continental and gives Zero an army of High Table enforcers to help with killing John, Winston grants him access to the Continental's arsenal and the assistance of Charon and his staff given the circumstances.  

John Wick: Chapter 4

Winston himself was declared excommunicado by the High Table for his failure to kill John, resulting in the New York Continental being destroyed and Charon being executed. As part of the demands that he delivered for John's duel with Vincent Bisset de Gramont, Winston asked that the New York Continental be rebuilt and reconsecrated and that Winston's excommunicado status be lifted. After John killed Vincent and wins the duel, the Harbinger announced that John's obligations to the High Table have been satisfied and he is a free man while all of Winston's demands were met, revoking his excommunicado. Presumably John's excommunicado status was revoked as well, but he seemingly perished of his wounds afterwards.

Trivia

• Winston orders #11111. It is the same number as President John F. Kennedy's executive order (executive order 11111). JFK's executive order on June 11, 1963, provided "assistance for the removal of obstructions of justice and suppression of unlawful combinations within the state of Alabama." On November 22, 1963 (five months later), he was assassinated.
• While someone who is excommunicado loses all privileges to the Continental, they still cannot be killed on Continental grounds. Charon warned Zero that if he killed John, who was holding onto the steps of the Continental, he would himself become excommunicado. Notably, the Adjudicator had the Continental deconsecrated before she called reinforcements from the High Table, indicating that if the Continental's neutrality was still active at the time, even emissaries of the High Table would be unable to kill John or Winston without repercussions. This was later confirmed in John Wick: Chapter 4, with it being stated that the High Table and its agents are bound by the neutrality as well. This forced Marquis Vincent Bisset de Gramont to revoke the Osaka Continental's neutrality so that his men could hunt for John there.