King’s Man Premiered in London After Three Long Years
The world premiere of highly anticipated King’s Man (the prequel of Kingsman) took place in frosty London on the night of 11th of December 2021.
King’s Man is based on comics by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons and is a third instalment of a very successful high-budget franchise. As per usual, a collection of history’s worst tyrants and criminal masterminds gather to plot a war to wipe out millions. This time, think WWI setting with charismatic Rasputin (Rhys Ifans) on the scene.
Directed by Matthew Vaughn, this movie has been on the shelf for a long, long time collecting dust, partially caught up in the Disney/Fox merger, but mostly as a result of the pandemic. It’s been three years since the film was shot. At the star-studded premiere, director admitted he could hardly remember the film, it was so long. But Vaughn has always been passionate that the film should have cinema opening. “I think we all have to fight to keep cinema alive. Hopefully this [film] will help to stay cinemas where they have to be.”
The film takes you to the early days of Kingsman – the story of how it stated. It’s set in World War I era and features both historical and fictional events. Speaking about working a script into fiction and vice versa, Vaughn admitted it was difficult. “We couldn’t change history and history and history wasn’t necessarily designed for a structure of a screenplay.” To give the film that authentic feel, the film was shot with old lenses, according to the director. How authentic? “We used the lenses that Lawrence of Arabia was shot on. We shot it for a wide screen experience, not an iPad. It’s worth going to a cinema to see it.”
Ralph Fiennes, who plays Duke of Oxford admitted it was a buzz to be at the premiere. Speaking about working with director, Fiennes said Matthew is very original director. “Matthew sent me a script and I liked it. Matthew if very original author and director in commercial sense which is quite rare. It was pleasure to work with him”.
It’s the right time to see this film according to Rhys Ifans too. “It will make you laugh and cry – we all need it as a species. we all need a good night out,” he said at the opening.
Ifans’ character Rasputin is quite fast and agile. Admittedly, the role took a lot of effort from Ifans. “I had to get ‘super fit’. It’s not something I thought I would ever have to do. I had to learn a lot of stunts.” When it comes to other preparations, the actor admitted to have done his research by reading about Rasputin. What a fascinating character – one of those enduringly mysterious historical figures.”
One female lead in the film is played by British actress Gemma Arterton who plays the maid of Oxford Household. “I was star struck by the cast on the film,” admitted actress at the premiere.
Kingsman fans expect to be surprised and they will certainly be surprised. The theatrical release in the UK is set for Boxing Day, 26th of December 2021 – providing we won’t go into a national lockdown by then.
Editor in Chief of Ikon London Magazine, journalist, film producer and founder of The DAFTA Film Awards (The DAFTAs).
