And you used to think that Steven Spielberg and Ridley Scott were fast. But is any filmmaker working as quickly and diligently these days as Guy Ritchie? The “Sherlock Holmes” and “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” filmmaker has been on a crazy roll since around 2019. He released two films that year, Disney’s “Aladdin” and his own gangster flick, “The Gentleman.” The pandemic delayed him slightly, but he was back in theaters in 2021 with “Wrath of Man,” and he followed that up with two more films in 2023, the spy comedy “Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre,” and the Jake Gyllenhaal action thriller “The Covenant.” His 2024 film “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” starring Henry Cavill comes out April 19, 2024, via Lionsgate, and oh yeah, one more untitled action film starring Gyllenhaal, Cavill, and Eiza González is in the can and in post-production as we speak. Then there’s “The Fountain Of Youth.”
Yep, Ritchie has added one more film to his dance card: a global heist movie, an adventure travelogue about the famed fountain of youth. Apple Original Films and Skydance Media have teamed up for the tentpole set to star John Krasinski and Natalie Portman.
Written by screenwriter James Vanderbilt (known for all kinds of films including “Zodiac,” “The Amazing Spider-Man,” and the recent “Scream” films), the film centers on two estranged siblings (Krasinski and Portman) who partner on a global heist to find the mythological Fountain of Youth. They must use their knowledge of history to follow clues on an epic adventure that will change their lives — and possibly lead to immortality.
READ MORE: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2024
It also sounds like a little bit of the Indiana Jones adventuring franchise with a twist. Vanderbilt’s script apparently blew the executives away, but they didn’t want to move forward until the right package emerged. And well, Ritchie directing Portman and Krasinski is a hell of a pitch for most audiences and execs.
The plan is to shoot in the first quarter of 2024, and at Ritchie’s speed, it could easily be ready for the end of the year. That said, he has to finish his untitled action film with Gyllenhaal, Cavill, and González, and this sounds like more of a summer blockbuster attempt, so it would not surprise us if we don’t see it until 2025. Stranger things have happened with Ritchie’s career, though, and again, it wouldn’t shock if he somehow releases two movies in 2024 as well, presumably gunning for some insane record.
