The King’s Man has a surprising story about how it was inspired. Plus, several more fun facts learned from the cast and Director.
The Kid Who Would Be King is a movie about a young boy, who would eventually become a King. It is an Arthurian tale set in modern day and is very underrated. During the press day for The King’s Man, Director Matthew Vaughn explains that this movie is the reason The King’s Man exists. After watching The Kid Who Would Be King, Vaughn thought it would be fun to make “The Man Who Would Be Kingsman” — and the story just evolved from there.
Due to the fact that this is a prequal film, there is no need to have seen the first two in the franchise in order to understand what is happening. This is also an entirely new cast, because it is set so far back in the past. Vaughn realized that he could take this franchise all the way back to 1919 and explore World War I, the Treaty of Versailles, and Rasputin — who he admits he was always obsessed with, for all the wrong reasons.
“It reminded me why I fell in love with cinema. The idea of an epic historical adventure film, but with great actors, great characters, humor, pathos, and just pure escapism and entertainment. Then I remembered the speech that Harry gave to Eggsy about how, when, why, and what Kingsman was founded for.” – Matthew Vaughn
Related: 7 Things I Learned at The Kid Who Would Be King Press Conference
So, surprisingly, this movie likely wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for a cute family film about Arthur and how he came to be King Arthur. Vaughn got a weird itch after watching the movie, and was excited to explore the past of the Kingsman.
More Fun Facts About The King’s Man
There is so much more that was learned about The King’s Man during the press conference. Here are just a few of our favorite The King’s Man fun facts.
Participating Talent:
- Ralph Fiennes (“Duke of Oxford”)
- Gemma Arterton (“Polly”)
- Harris Dickinson (“Conrad”)
- Djimon Honsou (“Shola”)
- Rhys Ifans (“Rasputin”)
- Matthew Vaughn (Director)
- Moderator: Erik Davis, Fandango
- Ralph Fiennes was most drawn to this role because The Duke of Oxford is a reluctant hero and a pacifist. That, and the drama of it all.
- Gemma Arterton wanted to play Polly because of all the amazing women in history who were working behind the scenes to get stuff done. There were women code crackers who were instrumental in the second world war that inspired her performance in The King’s Man.
- Djimon Honsou has a lot of action experience and a background in mixed martial arts and boxing, but the action choreography was surprisingly challenging for him, and more intense than he expected.
- Rhys Ifans worked to find a physical language that was specific and unique to Rasputin by combining Russian dancing and martial arts. The idea behind this was everyone who Rasputin killed has a drunken smile on their face when they die.
- Harris Dickinson drew upon a lot of his own experiences when playing Conrad.
About The King’s Man
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.”
“The King’s Man” is directed by Matthew Vaughn and stars Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Rhys Ifans, Matthew Goode, Tom Hollander, Harris Dickinson, Daniel Brühl, with Djimon Hounsou, and Charles Dance.
Matthew Vaughn, David Reid and Adam Bohling are the producers, and Mark Millar, Dave Gibbons, Stephen Marks, Claudia Vaughn and Ralph Fiennes serve as executive producers. “The King’s Man” is based on the comic book “The Secret Service” by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons, and the story is by Matthew Vaughn and the screenplay is by Matthew Vaughn & Karl Gajdusek.
“The King’s Man” opens in U.S. theaters on December 22, 2021.
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. On Camera personality and TV / Film Critic with 10+ years of experience in video editing, writing, editing, moderating, and hosting.