When Kingsman: The Secret Service became one of this year’s surprise hits, it turned relatively unknown actor Taron Egerton into one of Hollywood’s hottest commodities. While one would assume such success would see the actor riding high, it has also created a scheduling nightmare. The financial victory of Kingsman has all but guaranteed a sequel will arrive shortly, but production of the Fox sponsored sequel has begun to butt heads with another Lionsgate film in which Egerton has already committed to appear.
According The Hollywood Reporter, scheduling between the two studios has created quite the headache. Keen to get the ball rolling on a Kingsman sequel, 20th Century Fox has planned to begin production on the next installment in the spy franchise – fronted by Egerton – this April. This conflicts with Lionsgate’s current plan to have Egerton begin filming Robin Hood: Origins in February. There’s no way Robin Hood could possibly wrap production by the time Fox needed him on set for Kingsman, creating a conflict.
Contractually, Taron Egerton’s commitment to a Kingsman sequel supersedes his involvement in Robin Hood: Origins, however, Lionsgate’s take on the folk hero is already much further along in development. While 20th Century Fox is currently struggling to put together a proper story for Kingsman 2 – such has how to bring back Colin Firth’s Galahad – Robin Hood: Origins has already begun the casting process for numerous secondary characters in the film.
Despite the headache, these disputes usually have a way of sorting themselves out in a way that proves beneficial for all parties involved. Fox and Lionsgate previously came into conflict over Jennifer Lawrence’s schedule for the X-Men and The Hunger Games franchises, respectively. Although she’s certainly a talented actress with numerous indies to her credit, her appearances in both of these major franchises are what turned her into the household name we know her as today.
Ironically, both situations involve a Hollywood up-and-comer torn between a major comic book franchise at 20th Century Fox, and a role as an iconic archer at Lionsgate. Egerton has been in high demand as of late, having also been considered to play numerous iconic characters such as Spider-Man -- before the role eventually went to Tom Holland -- as well as a young Han Solo in one of the upcoming Star Wars anthology films. The actor has also publicly stated that he would like to take over the role of Wolverine when 20th Century Fox inevitably recasts following the departure of Hugh Jackman. With that on his plate, Egerton and his reps are likely currently looking for the most expedient way to resolve this conflict, and allow him to appear in films for both studios as soon as possible.
We will keep you posted with more information as it becomes available, both Kingsman 2 and Robin Hood: Origins are currently slated for a 2017 release date.
