There was something pleasing about Kingsman: The Great Game swooping into a release date on 15 November 2019, the date originally pegged for Bond 25 (or are we calling it Shatterhand these days?) Matthew Vaughn’s raucous spy thrillers have played out like extreme homages to 007’s adventures, so it seemed fitting that the next instalment in the franchise would hop into a former Bond slot. However, that’s no longer the case – the release of The Great Game has now shifted back slightly, to a more romantic date: 14 February 2020.
That’s not to say it’s worth worrying about progress on The Great Game, which is currently shooting. The launch switcheroo means that another 20th Century Fox film – Ford v. Ferrari, from Logan director James Mangold – is now coming out on 15 November, a date which suggests possible Oscar hopes for the story of the rival car companies battling to win at Le Mans in 1966. The Valentine’s Day arrival for Kingsman also acts as counter-programming for anyone not getting on board with the recent rom-com revival.
Kingsman: The Great Game will be a departure for the series, a prequel set in the early 20th Century depicting the origins of the spy agency. That means Taron Egerton and Colin Firth are out for this one, and the likes of Ralph Fiennes, Daniel Brühl, Charles Dance, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Gemma Arterton and Matthew Goode are in, with young British actor Harris Dickinson (Beach Rats and The Darkest Minds) expected to be the play the film’s lead. Matthew Vaughn will once again write and direct, before going on to shoot the third instalment in the Harry Hart-Eggsy Kingsman trilogy.
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