- Guy Ritchie is framing up his muse Jason Statham for Viva La Madness, based on author J.J. Connollyโs sequel to Layer Cake.
- The number one question is whether the duo can re-bottle lightning a la Lock, Stock, & Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, as well as Revolver (or fall flat like with their recent output).
- Guy Ritchieโs Viva La Madness release date: TBA.
Despite mixed (at best) receptions for Wrath of Man and Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, Guy Ritchie and Jason Statham are choosing to further their longstanding creative partnership with a sixth feature film, one that will hopefully recapture some of their original magic.
While precise details surrounding the plot are currently being kept under wraps, we know itโll be titled Viva La Madness and based on author J.J. Connollyโs sequel novel to Layer Cake, which was famously adapted for screens by another Ritchie collaborator, Matthew Vaughn (his directorial debut), starring a pre-Bond Daniel Craig and Sienna Miller.
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โHowever, the film is being billed as a standalone, original feature and not a sequel, spin-off, or continuation of any previous adaptation of Connollyโs work,โ clarifies Alex Ritman of Variety.
In the sophomore literary effort from Connolly, which picks up some time after the events of Layer Cake, only two characters remain: the unnamed narrator X and his partner in crime, Mister Mortimer (AKA Morty). The story opens in the Caribbean with Morty attempting to recruit X back to both London and the crime business as a โsuper-salesman and closer for a UK syndicate.โ
One does wonder how something that, at face value, feels so intrinsically tied to the first instalment will be styled as an original standalone.
Talks of a Layer Cake sequel with Ritchie and Statham attached have been in circulation since 2013, with the latter once on track to assume the mantle of Daniel Craigโs X.
Viva La Madness, the forthcoming Guy Ritchie picture, was โinitiatedโ by Jason Statham and Thomas Benski (Gangs of London), whoโve signed on to produce via Punch Palace Productions and Lumina Studios, alongside the writer-directorโs Toff Guy Films โ including his partner in crime Ivan Atkinson.
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Production is set to kick off in January 2026, with Statham being the sole confirmed cast member thus far. But before cameras begin rolling, you can expect both the black comedy Wife & Dog starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Rosamund Pike, as well as Netflixโs The Gentlemen season 2, from Mr Ritchie.
Stay tuned for Viva La Madness updates (release date, cast, plot, trailer, etc.).
