Director Guy Ritchie has had quite the cinematic career, starting out with smaller movies, like Snatch and Swept Away, and in the last decade transitioning to major blockbusters, like the Sherlock Holmes movies and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, the latter of which is finally in theaters. As with every director, not all of Ritchie's offerings have been hits, but Ritchie was surprised to discover that there was more positive reaction to The Man from U.N.C.L.E. than he previously thought. When told there's been increased interest in the theatrical adaptation of the 1960s TV series, Ritchie said:
I had no fucking idea. I had no fucking idea! Fuck it, I love the movie.
Critically The Man from U.N.C.L.E. performed decently when it was released in 2015, ranking at 67% among critics on Rotten Tomatoes and earning a 73% Audience Score. Commercially, on the other hand, it underperformed, making only a little over $109 million of a $75 million budget. Earlier in the Indiewire interview, Guy Ritchie attributed The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'s commercial failure to its poor release date, August 24, but he was clearly pleased to learn that the movie has a passionate fanbase. Presumably learning how little money it made had influenced how he thought it was received by audiences.
While Guy Ritchie admitted that he's not always proud of his previous work, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. remains one of his movies that he still re-watches from time to time, adding:
I felt pretty confident about that film. I sit there, I watch it, I can pick it up at any point, and it just jollies on. I'll think, 'Oh, I really enjoyed that.' 'U.N.C.L.E.' is one of those movies.
Starring Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer and Alicia Vikander, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was a stylized re-telling of the TV series that starred Robert Vaughn and David McCallum. Just like its predecessor, the movie teamed the American Napoleon Solo (Cavill) and the Russian Illya Kuryakin (Hammer) together so they could save the world and slowly overcome their differences. Well, most of them.
Despite The Man from U.N.C.L.E. being a financial disappointment, not all hope is lost for seeing a sequel. Last month, Armie Hammer spoke with screenwriter and co-writer Lionel Wigram about writing a follow-up, and according to the actor, Wigram said he'd start working on it. That is by no means a guarantee that it will actually be made, but considering how fondly Guy Ritchie looks back at the first movie, it sounds like he'd be game for a sequel.
With The Man from U.N.C.L.E. in the past and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword now playing, Guy Ritchie is now turning his attention to directing Disney's live action Aladdin remake. And if there's any news on The Man From U.N.C.L.E. 2, we'll be sure to let you know.
