The Kingsman universe is expanding with the upcoming prequel The King’s Man, and here’s everything we know. Adapted from the Mark Millar comic book series of the same name, the Kingsman films have become hugely popular, not only launching the career of actor Taron Egerton, who plays protagonist Eggsy, but also raking in millions at the box office with its two installments, Kingsman: The Secret Service and Kingsman: The Golden Circle. In addition to introducing the world to Egerton, the Kingsman series stars Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Michael Caine, Channing Tatum, Jeff Bridges, and Halle Berry.
The first Kingsman film follows Eggsy (Egerton), a London teen who finds himself inducted into a secret intelligence agency known as Kingsman. As a Kingsman, Eggsy has to train to become an elite agent who is skilled in weapons, espionage, and hand-to-hand combat. The process is grueling and the enemies are plentiful, but Eggsy’s journey with the Kingsman is one thrilling right. In The Golden Circle, the story expands to include the American branch of the Kingsman, the Statesman, and sees the Kingsman traveling across the pond (and later, all over the world) for their next mission.
Instead of continuing with a new story right away, the Kingsman franchise is now going back in time with an origin story. The prequel movie, The King’s Man, is set to reveal the origins of the Kingsman secret service and introduce a whole slew of new characters. Here’s more information on those details and other key aspects of the prequel you should know about.
The King’s Man Release Date Has Been Set
Securing and settling on release dates for Kingsman 3 and The King’s Man haven’t been the easiest thing to do. In the case of The King’s Man, the film was originally supposed to be released November 8, 2019 in both the U.S. and the UK. It was reported in February 2019 that the release date for The King’s Man had been pushed back to February 14, 2020. The reason for the delay wasn’t made clear at the time, but it’s possible it tied in to the production schedule for Kingsman 3 and the overall vision for the pacing of release dates for the Kingsman franchise. More likely, though, is that it was tied to the then-in-process acquisition of Fox by Disney, which would have affected any schedules for in-production Fox projects.
Matthew Vaughn Will Direct The King’s Man
Matthew Vaughn will remain in the director’s chair for The King’s Man, having guided both previous Kingsman films to success in the past. Although past reports indicate Vaughn wanted to film The King’s Man and Kingsman 3 back-to-back, it looks like that will no longer be happening. This break with planning seems to be down to scheduling conflicts for Kingsman lead Egerton, who was busy filming Rocketman at the time Vaughn would have going right into production on this third installment. With plans for Kingsman 3 pushed, Vaughn has been able to dedicate his attention to The King’s Man, which has been shot before the next Kingsman film.
The King’s Man Plot Will Cover The Kingsman’s Origins
The King’s Man will focus on one of the first Kingsman recruits and his mission to stop the world from falling into chaos at the hands of a unique group of villains. The film’s official synopsis reads:
As a collection of history’s worst tyrants and criminal masterminds gather to plot a war to wipe out millions, one man must race against time to stop them. Discover the origins of the very first independent intelligence agency in THE KING’S MAN, directed by Matthew Vaughn, coming to theaters February 2020.
It’s likely The King’s Man will be set around 1913 or 1914, based on what we know about the Kingsman secret service from the first movie as well as this new synopsis. In the first film, Harry (Firth) tells Eggsy that Kingsman was founded during World War I by a group of tailors who inherited vast fortunes from their wealthy British clientele. If The King’s Man is going to show the origins of the organization, then it will likely begin during or right before the war and proceed from there. Starting with World War I also ties in to the synopsis’ mention of a group of “tyrants and criminal masterminds” orchestrating a war for their own purposes, which means there may be some clever retconning of history in order to make the events fit together.
The King’s Man Features A Brand-New Cast
Since The King’s Man takes place decades before the events of the first two movies, it will have an entirely new cast. However, there will be plenty of familiar faces to entice viewers. The King’s Man cast will be led by Ralph Fiennes and Harry Dickinson. Fiennes will play the Duke of Oxford while Dickinson, best known for his role in FX’s Trust miniseries, will play a teenager named Conrad, whose entry into Kingsman might mirror Eggsy’s. Additional The King’s Man cast members include Stanley Tucci, Gemma Arterton, Djimon Hounsou, Matthew Goode, Rhys Ifans, Daniel Bruhl, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Charles Dance. There is no confirmation on whether certain characters will be tied to any present-day Kingsman characters or if present-day Kingsman characters will appear at all, like in a flash-forward.
This Is When We Can Expect The King’s Man Trailer
Filming began before Kingsman 3, starting in the UK and Italy in February 2019. A traditional shooting schedule on a feature-length film (around 2-3 months) means shooting should have wrapped between April and June. With no reports of any calamities during filming, it seems everything is on track with The King’s Man but no new footage has been released – not even in the form of a teaser trailer. Given this delay, there’s a chance the first teaser or full-length trailer will be unveiled at Comic-Con 2019. If the trailer for the anticipated prequel doesn’t surface at the event, then it may happen in fall or winter 2019, just a few months before the February 2020 release date.
The King’s Man Could Be Part Of A Shared Universe
Plans for a Kingsman TV series were announced back in June 2018 in addition to The King’s Man and Kingsman 3. At the time, director Matthew Vaughn stated the intention to create an 8-episode TV series which would continue that Kingsman story and potentially tie back into the films. This falls in line with Kingsman plans and conversations around a Kingsman shared universe. This includes additional discussions about wrapping up Eggsy’s story in Kingsman 3 and making a spinoff film about the American branch of the Kingsman, the Statesman. Oddly, no further discussion about the Statesman spinoff or the Kingsman TV series have been mentioned since June 2018, so it’s unclear if those plans have been dropped or will be revisited once Kingsman 3 is in the can.
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