As part of its annual summer preview, Yahoo Movies recently invited King Arthur: Legend of the Sword into the limelight in order to showcase a never-before-seen action shot of Charlie Hunnam’s title hero standing tall, Excalibur in hand; now, the outlet has unearthed a moody new clip in which Michael McElhatton’s Jack’s Eye can be seen dishing out words of wisdom to the man who would be king.
Indeed, McElhatton is by no means the only Game of Thrones actor to feature in Legend of the Sword; Aiden Gillen, who plays the role of Littlefinger so brilliantly on HBO’s fantasy flagship, also stars as Sir William/Goosefat Bill. But when it comes to the star-studded cast that Warner Bros. and Guy Ritchie have assembled, we’re just beginning to scratch the surface. There’s also Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey as a reworked, slightly modernized version of Guinevere – word is that Ritchie and the creative team have toned down the romantic subplot between her and Arthur – Djimon Hounsou, Eric Bana and Jude Law as the power-mongering tyrant, Vortigern.
Setting the VFX and impressive sense of scope to one side, these promos are more a showcase of how each character riffs off one another once Excalibur has been pulled from the stone, and with tickets for early previews already selling like hotcakes, Legend of the Sword has every chance of becoming the franchise-starter Warner so craves.
From nothing comes a king: Guy Ritchie’s King Arthur: Legend of the Sword will light up theaters on May 12th. Twice delayed, it’s angled as the beginning of a shared Medieval universe, and providing the box office figures are to Warner’s liking, a further two movies in the King Arthur saga will shift the spotlight over to two of Camelot’s greatest heroes:Â Merlin and Lancelot.
When Arthur’s father is murdered, Vortigern (Jude Law), Arthur’s uncle, seizes the crown. Robbed of his birthright and with no idea who he truly is, Arthur comes up the hard way in the back alleys of the city. But once he pulls the sword from the stone, his life is turned upside down and he is forced to acknowledge his true legacy…whether he likes it or not.
