Henry Cavill leads the all-star cast of Kingsman director Matthew Vaughn's new spy franchise Argylle. Vaughn adapted the Mark Millar comic book The Secret Service in 2014 and launched a franchise that would later include Kingsman: The Golden Circle and will soon get a prequel in The King's Man.
Not content with heading up one spy franchise, Vaughn is now preparing to launch another with Argylle. As reported by Deadline, the new venture to be produced and directed by Vaughn follows "the world's greatest spy" Argylle as he undertakes globetrotting adventures. Superman star Cavill heads up the cast, which also includes Sam Rockwell, Bryce Dallas Howard, Bryan Cranston, Catherine O'Hara, Peacemaker star John Cena and Samuel L. Jackson. Pop star Dua Lipa will also make her film debut in the new franchise while providing music.
Based on the soon-to-be-published novel Argylle from Ellie Conway, the franchise is planned to run for three films at least, with the first scheduled to begin shooting in Europe in August. Vaughn said in a statement: “When I read this early draft manuscript I felt it was the most incredible and original spy franchise since Ian Fleming’s books of the 50s. This is going to reinvent the spy genre.”
James Bond of course remains the gold standard when it comes to the spy movie genre, though in recent years Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible series (also featuring Cavill for one film) has arguably eclipsed it in importance. Vaughn's Kingsman films represent a new approach to the genre emphasizing comic book-style action with winking references to many familiar tropes from the James Bond series. It remains to be seen what further new twists on the genre Vaughn is set to offer up with Argylle.
Source: Deadline