The stars of the last two Guy Ritchie movies are set to team up in the celebrated director’s next film even though he’s on a streak of box office flops. Ritchie’s latest film The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare opened to strong reviews upon its mid-April 2024 release date but is struggling to make back its budget of $60 million, earning less than $22 million after 4 weeks. Despite the star power of Henry Cavill, whose other 2024 action movie Argylle was also a massive box office flop, Ungentlemanly Warfare became the third straight commercial misfire from the Sherlock Holmes director.
2023 was a tough year for Ritchie with both of his movies, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre starring Jason Statham and The Covenant starring Jake Gyllenhaal, failing to break even at the box office. While the reviews for Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre were more of a mixed bag, The Covenant received positive reviews and is currently the highest-rated Guy Ritchie film on Rotten Tomatoes, earning a critic score of 83% and an audience score of 98%. Still, The Covenant was only able to generate $21.6 million worldwide against a budget of $55 million, resulting in a disappointing 2023.
Guy Ritchie’s two most recent movies, The Covenant and Ungentlemanly Warfare, were beloved by audiences despite both being office flops. Ironically, the stars of both of those films, Jake Gyllenhaal and Henry Cavill, are teaming up for Ritchie’s next movie In The Grey, an action film set for a January 2025 release. Eiza González, who was also in Ungentlemanly Warfare, will star in the new film as well. It’s clear that Ritchie is listening much more intently to the critical acclaim and audience praise of his last two films than he is to the implications of his poor recent box office streak.
In The Grey is expected to be released on January 17, 2025 and is currently in post-production. The story revolves around two extraction specialists, played by Cavill and Gyllenhaal, who have to plan an escape route for a senior female negotiator, likely González. The film will also star Fisher Stevens (Succession), Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl, Saltburn), and Jason Wong (Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves). Based on its intriguing premise that lays the foundation for an intense thriller, as the combination of Gyllenhaal and Cavill, In The Grey is poised to be one of Ritchie’s best movies.
Ritchie has been putting out some of the best work of his career as of late, with four of his last five movies earning fresh ratings on Rotten Tomatoes. All five of these films dating back to 2019’s The Gentlemen have received audience scores greater than 82%, with the lowest critic score among them Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre at 51%. The five films come off the $1.05 billion box office smash Aladdin, which remains to be Ricthie’s highest-grossing film by a long shot, and the 43rd highest-grossing movie of all time.
The only thing missing from the critical acclaim of Ritchie’s post-Aladdin films are the box office numbers to back them up. Both The Covenant and Ungentlemanly Warfare have the highest audience ratings for a Guy Ritchie movie since Aladdin. By the numbers alone, both of these films should have done better at the box office, and it appears that Ritchie is fully aware of this. The fact that Ritchie is doubling down with the same two actors of his recent flops is bold but is reaffirmed by their combined favor among audiences. In The Grey should hopefully inspire a box office comeback.
Guy Ritchie may not have much left to prove as a celebrated screenwriter, director, and visionary of the action genre, but he is certainly due for another box office smash.
The Gentleman fared well at the box office, earning $115 million worldwide against a $22 million budget, while Wrath of Man’s box office was just okay, earning $104 million worldwide with a $40 million budget. 2023 was tough with two huge flops, and Ungentlemanly Warfare looks less than promising, but Ritchie still has box office promise with In The Grey. It likely won’t reach Sherlock Holmes levels, but it should aim to outperform King Arthur’s (2017) $139 million.