The King's Man

The King's Man is an upcoming period spy action comedy film directed by Matthew Vaughn, who wrote the screenplay with Karl Gajdusek. The film is a prequel and the third film in the Kingsman film series, which is loosely based on the comic book series Kingsman, created by Dave Gibbons and Mark Millar and published by Marvel's Icon Comics imprint.

The film features an ensemble cast that includes Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Rhys Ifans, Matthew Goode, Tom Hollander, Harris Dickinson, Daniel Brühl, Djimon Hounsou and Charles Dance.

The King's Man is scheduled to be released on February 12, 2021 by 20th Century Studios, delayed from a previous September 2020 release date due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Premise
"As a collection of history's worst tyrants and criminal masterminds gather to plot a war to wipe out millions, one man and his protégé must race against time to stop them."

Cast

 * Ralph Fiennes as the Duke of Oxford
 * Gemma Arterton as Polly
 * Rhys Ifans as Grigori Rasputin
 * Matthew Goode as Captain Morton / The Shepherd
 * Tom Hollander as George V, Wilhelm II and Nicholas II
 * Harris Dickinson as Conrad
 * Daniel Brühl as Erik Jan Hanussen
 * Djimon Hounsou as Shola
 * Charles Dance as Herbert Kitchener
 * Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Lee Unwin
 * Stanley Tucci
 * Neil Jackson
 * Joel Basman
 * Alison Steadman
 * Robert Aramayo as Gavrilo Princip
 * Alexandra Maria Lara

Development
In June 2018, Matthew Vaughn announced that a prequel film titled Kingsman: The Great Game was in active development, stating that the plot would take place during the early-1900s and would depict the formation of the spy agency and that the project would film back-to-back with "the third regular Kingsman film" which is scheduled to be released in 2021.

Casting
In September 2018, it was announced that Ralph Fiennes and Harris Dickinson would star in the prequel. In November 2018, it was revealed that Daniel Brühl, Charles Dance, Rhys Ifans and Matthew Goode would co-star in the film. In February 2019, it was reported that Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Gemma Arterton, Tom Hollander, Djimon Hounsou, Alison Steadman, Stanley Tucci, Robert Aramayo and Neil Jackson had joined the cast. In April 2019, it was announced Alexandra Maria Lara had joined the cast of the film. Later in May, Joel Basman joined the cast. That same month, as filming concluded, Vaughn denied reports that Liam Neeson had joined the cast. Vaughn also said The Great Game was a working title and the film would not have that name.

Filming
Principal photography began January 22, 2019 in the United Kingdom. In April 2019 some scenes were shot in Turin and Venaria Reale (Italy), transformed into Yugoslavia. Additional photography is expected to begin sometime in 2020, primarily featuring Arterton. The film's initial cinematographer Ben Davis had to depart the project during reshoots due to his commitments to Eternals.

Marketing
The first teaser trailer of The King's Man was released on July 15, 2019. The second trailer was released on September 28, 2019. The third trailer was released on June 21, 2020, which showcased many of the action scenes.

Release
The King's Man was originally to be released on November 15, 2019, but was pushed back first to February 14, 2020, and then to September 18, 2020. The release date was again pushed back to February 26, 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the delay of Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase Four films, The King's Man was moved up two weeks to February 12, 2021.