Marv Planning Around Seven More ‘Kingsman’ Films, Says New CEO
Marv Group CEO Zygi Kamasa has said that filmmaker Matthew Vaughn is plotting “something like seven more Kingsman films” as part of the company’s expansion plans.
“We want to grow the business and the output,” Kamasa told the Winston Baker UK Finance Summit late last week. “We have a Kingsman TV series in the works and there are two-three other franchises that are being developed alongside the Kingsman world.”
Through two movies, the Kingsman franchise has grossed $825.2M. Covid-delayed prequel The King’s Man is due to hit cinemas in February of next year for Disney. Starring Ralph Fiennes, Daniel Bruhl, Stanley Tucci, Gemma Arterton, Matthew Goode, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Djimon Hounsou, the film could feasibly take the series past $1BN.
Marv last week announced its first TV series, Day 1, a ten-episode soccer-world show from Entourage creator Doug Ellin, and the company is due to start shoot next week on Taron Egerton movie Tetris, which was recently snapped up by Apple.
As we revealed, Kamasa joined Marv earlier this year after a long stint as Lionsgate’s CEO, UK and Europe. During the Winston Baker fireside talk hosted by Deadline, the distribution vet discussed the outlook for indie majors such as Lionsgate and eOne, which, like many traditional studios, have seen significant consolidation this year in the face of Covid and evolving viewing habits. Kamasa’s former UK team at Lionsgate has undergone much change.
“These companies have been going through massive change over the last nine months,” he said. “Some of those changes were coming anyway and Covid has sped them up. Jon Feltheimer and Joe Drake [Lionsgate’s CEO and Motion Picture Group CEO, respectively] will adapt and change. The larger companies are being disrupted the most. Lionsgate is well positioned, I think, even compared to some of the majors. There is a level of agility compared to the very biggest companies.”
On windowing, he said: “Covid has shown the cracks in the industry and made those cracks larger. The cinema business had to change. The rigid model the industry has had for the best part of two-three decades had to change. People want content in different ways. That doesn’t mean people won’t want to go to the cinema. But flexibility is key. You have to be flexible about who you sell content to. It’s all about making great content.”
Kamasa reiterated his belief that British independent films could be priced differently to U.S. blockbusters in a bid to stimulate their box office and help local sustainability. “The industry has to adapt to try these things. The cinemas all said no way when we looked into this when I was chair of the BFI’s UK Independent Film Commission. Has the pandemic brought that to the fore once more? I’d love to see the BFI pursuing that agenda again.”
Could distribution be something Marv gets into ultimately? “Yes, possibly at some stage,” he noted. “We’ll explore all opportunities. But nothing is planned in the near future.”
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