The veil of mystery surrounding director Matthew Vaughn’s contribution to the 2024 movie schedule has started to lift. Thanks to the Argylle trailer showing off Henry Cavill and Bryce Dallas Howard in action, fans know the meta-fictional adventure comedy is ready to lovingly celebrate and mock the world of espionage stories. And during an appearance at last weekend’s New York Comic Con, Vaughn highlighted the crux of this "meta" story by using Harry Potter to make his point.
During the panel, “Matthew Vaughn: From Kickass to Kingsman to Argylle,” THR was on hand to hear the famed director’s remarks on his next would-be franchise. Vaughn emphasized that the film would be somewhat quirky, which is evident throughout the trailer. Though I'm not sure anyone would've expected him to make a comparison to the Wizarding World:
We wanted to do something very meta. I just loved the idea of what would happen if a wizard went to J.K. Rowling in book three and said, ‘You know what? Wizards are real. Hogwarts is real. I’m real. I’m going to show you what it’s really like,’ and going on an adventure.
If Warner Bros. isn’t salivating over that idea themselves, give them time. Meanwhile, Universal Pictures gets to dig into this crazy-sounding romp themselves next February. Though Argylle was delayed, the studio partnered with Apple to release this previously intended streaming original as a silver screen blockbuster.
Matthew Vaughn certainly didn’t stop at the comparisons to the Harry Potter franchise, as he believes that his latest flick is the start of something special. While the details surrounding how real Elly Conway truly is are still in question, there’s no doubt that the book named after Henry Cavill’s hero actually exists. On top of giving a limited number of the advanced reading copies to NYCC’s audience, Vaughn put this fine little button on the matter himself:
We thought we’ll do that with spies. So Elly Conway, I think, in real life will become a J.K. Rowling of spy movies, of spy novels.
In promotional shots for the upcoming movie, there are four books on display, with Bryce Dallas Howard's protagonist looking to be in the middle of writing a fifth in the film’s first footage. So if this project takes off like the filmmaker hopes, these hopes of landing the next Potter-style hit just might come true. In which case, one could assume that unless some creative recasting is already built into the story, Henry Cavill’s tough luck with James Bond just might continue. Albeit for much better, and more job-securing reasons.
Argylle sets its sights on conquering two fronts of entertainment at the beginning of 2024, and there’s two different ways you’ll be able to enjoy the fun! Elly Conway’s debut novel hits shelves starting January 9th; and you can preorder it on Amazon, or wherever you shop for your literature-related needs.
As for the movie that shares its name, and to a certain extent its universe, you’ll be able to see it exclusively in theaters starting February 2nd. Though keep your Apple TV+ subscription up to date, as that’s presumed to be the eventual streaming home for this explosive and satirical romp.
