"The King's Man" is the third "Kingsman" movie, but it's not "Kingsman 3." Here's everything you
need to know about the rollicking prequel, and the future of the "Kingsman" franchise.
The date and title of the third "Kingsman" movie ended up changing during the production process.
At first, the film was announced with the working title "Kingsman: The Great Game." Eventually,
it was decided that it would instead be titled "The King's Man," which is a good
fit — it references the original films while still making it clear that this movie will be different.
Originally, the release date for The King's Man was planned for November 15,
2019. However, the date was pushed back to Valentine's Day 2020 so that Fox could give that
prime awards season spot to "Ford vs. Ferrari". It was pushed back yet again to September 18,
and then came the COVID-19 pandemic. That global disruption in movie exhibition pushed "The King's
Man" back yet again — this time all the way to December 22, 2021. Better late than never, right?
Matthew Vaughn, who directed both "Kingsman: The Secret Service" and
its sequel "The Golden Circle," is getting behind the camera again for "The King's Man."
Vaughn said during a panel discussion at New York Comic Con,
"I wanted to scratch an itch that I've had for ages in making a movie [like] the big,
epic adventure films that I grew up on. [...] Making a movie like
that on this sort of scale is not exactly easy to raise money for so I thought if I
entwine that into the King's Man universe, Hollywood wouldn't be as scared of it."
Vaughn named "Lawrence of Arabia," "The Man Who Would Be King," and "The English
Patient" as films that inspired his vision for "The King's Man."
While "The Secret Service" and "The Golden Circle" took place in modern times and
featured the Kingsman organization dealing with contemporary issues,
"The King's Man" is going to be a prequel to those films set against the backdrop of World War I.
Why did Vaughn decide to work on a prequel, rather than jumping straight into working on another
sequel? According to the director himself, he saw it as an opportunity to start with a blank canvas,
rather than building on the previous films. He told Entertainment Weekly in 2019,
"It's hard to do plot twists with characters that are known,
so I wanted to do an origin movie that had hardly anything to do with the original Kingsmen."
He also says that you can watch and enjoy "The King's Man" even if you
haven't seen the other "Kingsman" films yet.
Since "The King's Man" takes place so many years before the events of
"The Secret Service" and "The Golden Circle," Taron Egerton
and Colin Firth will not be returning to their starring roles as Eggsy and Harry.
Although a Kingsman film without Egerton and Firth will definitely have a different tone,
this gives Vaughn the chance to bring some fresh faces into the fold and go
in a new direction with this film. Plus, both actors have been quite busy lately.
Egerton starred as Elton John in the musical biopic "Rocketman," which earned overwhelmingly
positive reviews from critics and even generated some Oscar buzz. More recently,
he voiced Rian in the Netflix Jim Henson puppet series "The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance,"
and his voice will be heard again in "Sing 2," in which he'll return as Johnny the gorilla.
As for Firth, his recent roles include the war drama "1917" as well as "The
Secret Garden" and "Supernova." Clearly not averse to acting through big-scale conflict,
he's also set to appear in another war drama, "Operation Mincemeat."
"The King's Man" is a period film that offers an alternative take on the events of World War I,
leading up to the establishment of the Kingsman organization proper.
It largely centers on two characters: Harris Dickinson's Conrad, and his father,
Ralph Fiennes' Orlando, the Duke of Oxford.
We definitely know that it's a period film set during World War I, but judging by the irreverent
tone of the previous Kingsman films, it's not going to be a run of the mill historical drama.
"F--- this gentleman shite! I'm gonna love killing you."
Harris Dickinson is starring in The King's Man as Conrad,
whose aspirations to become a soldier and fight in the global conflict end up
leading him in a very different direction than he or his father originally intended.
Dickinson has raved about his experience shooting "The King's Man."
The actor said that he felt like he had lots of creative freedom in his role,
with the movie telling a new story that doesn't rely on the previous films to make sense.
In an interview with Collider, Dickinson said,
"It's not like the pressure of a sequel,
necessarily, where you've got to come in and continue the story."
Ralph Fiennes will play Conrad's father, the Duke of Oxford,
and the founder of the Kingsman organization. He acts as a mentor to Conrad throughout the film,
teaching his son that while the government might not take action to stop injustice in time,
Kingsman can. His opinion is that espionage is a more effective way of
fighting than using brute force -- not that his son necessarily believes it.
"Real power is not found running off to war."
Fiennes told ComicBook.com,
"His son's growing up and is full of [a] sense of duty and wanting to prove
himself as a soldier and as a man of honor. I try to give him another perspective [...] how
you can do more damage to the enemy by the right intelligence/undercover work than all-out war."
The cast of The King's Man is rounded out by several accomplished actors.
Gemma Arterton, who recently lent her voice to the TV adaptation of
the novel "Watership Down," will have a leading role as Polly,
a classy sharpshooter connected to the proto-Kingsman group.
Djimon Hounsou, known as Korath in Marvel films like "Captain Marvel"
and "Guardians of the Galaxy," is also involved in the adventure,
playing a swashbuckling character by the name of Shola.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson is set to play Lee Unwin, a soldier who,
considering the surname, is likely one of Eggsy Unwin's ancestors.
The movie's marketing also prominently features Rhys Ifans,
known for his work as Dr. Kurt Connors, aka the Lizard in "The Amazing Spider-Man," as
well as an appearance in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1" as Xenophilius
Lovegood. In "The King's Man," Ifans will appear as the notorious Russian Rasputin,
getting up to more close-quarters combat than you ever would have expected.
While "The King's Man" was still in production,
it was reported that Liam Neeson would be appearing in the film.
Neeson did seem like a great fit for a "Kingsman" film — but this casting news was only a rumor.
Vaughn told The Playlist back in 2019,
"I just wrapped the movie and unless he's got some amazing prosthetics and he's playing some
character I didn't know about, he ain't in the film. Never had a discussion. I love
Liam Neeson. And I'd love for him to be in it, but no, I have no idea where that came from."
"The King's Man" may be a prequel, but that doesn't mean we'll never find out
what happened to our modern day heroes after the events of "The Golden Circle."
Vaughn has already confirmed that another Kingsman film is in the works-- “Kingsman:
The Blue Blood" -- will be released in the future, picking up where "The Golden Circle left off."
A script for the movie is reportedly already written, and as far as the plot is concerned,
Vaughn says that audiences should, quote, "expect the unexpected." And this time,
Taron Egerton and Colin Firth will be back as Eggsy and Harry.
Egerton has said he's glad that he'll get a chance to return to the role, and he's hoping that
the new film will fare better with the critics than "The Golden Circle." Egerton told Empire,
"I would like the third one to be better received than the second one was. I felt we got a bit of an
unfair kicking if I'm totally honest. [...] What I would like to happen is for us to do a third one
and for it to feel like a worthy third installment to what has been a great part of my life."
There is also reportedly a "Kingsman" spinoff film in development under the title of "Statesman."
This film would presumably be all about Kingsman's American counterpart organization
by that name, which was featured prominently in "The Golden Circle."
"Oh… that'll make you wanna slap your mama, right there."
If the upcoming "Kingsman" films still aren't enough for you, you're in luck:
there is also reportedly a "Kingsman" television series planned.
The series will supposedly include eight hour-long episodes, but as of right now,
there's very little info out about the series — it's simply known as the "Untitled Kingsman
Project," and there's no release date yet. Production on the show has not started,
and there's no word about who the cast will be. Basically, we're in the dark for now,
although Vaughn reportedly has, quote, "something like seven more Kingsman films" up his sleeve.
If you're feeling a bit impatient about the upcoming projects, you can always check out
the animated Archer and Kingsman crossover, titled "#TBT to That Time Archer Met Kingsman"
"You probably shouldn't tell people you're a spy."
"Then what's the point of being one?"
"Fair enough."
The short features Eggsy alongside Sterling Archer, with Egerton voicing Eggsy. Archer happens
to find the secret Kingsman lair and outsmarts Eggsy at his own game during a drinking contest.
"Whoo! Beat that!"
With so many things in the works, fans will be getting plenty of new material
for years to come. There's still much to explore in the world of Kingsman.
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus,
even more Looper videos about upcoming movies and TV shows are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.