Such was the surprising success of Matthew Vaughn’s Kingsman: The Secret Service that it not only spawned a budding new series at Fox, but its sequel has taken priority on the schedule of one Taron Egerton. Tentatively slated for a release in 2017, the actor’s involvement in Kingsman 2 has effectively placed Lionsgate’s medieval reboot Robin Hood: Origins on the back-burner.
There’s good reason for that slight delay, rest assured. In keeping with the true ‘bigger, bolder, darker’ spirit of movie sequels, Egerton himself recently teased that Kingsman 2 will take the successful, bloodthirsty template of the original sleeper hit and expand it across an international scope.
In attendance at the Sundance Film Festival to promote his role in sports dramedy Eddie the Eagle, Collider quizzed the actor regarding the status of Fox’s follow-up, which is currently eyeing a start date this summer – hence the decision to postpone Robin Hood.
“With Kingsman, we’re shooting in the summer at present. There’s a script, it’s brilliant. Obviously there’s only so much I can say but what I can say is that we shot [the first] one all in the U.K., that won’t be the case with the next one. It’s a far more international story, we’re going to some incredible places, and we have a villain to rival Samuel L. Jackson—this new one is so brilliantly written I wish I could play it. It’s amazing.”
Touting a worldwide box office haul to the tune of $410 million, there’s no question that Kingsman: The Secret Service cemented its place as one of the sleeper hits of 2014, but will its sequel be able to capture lightning in a bottle once again? One thing’s for certain, word that Fox has nabbed a villain to rival Samuel L. Jackson’s Valentine is exciting in and of itself.
Kingsman 2 has been pegged for a release on June 16, 2017, opening shortly after Universal’s The Mummy reboot starring The Secret Service alum Sofia Boutella.
