‘Viva La Madness’ Confirms Star-Studded Cast as Production Hits London
‘Viva La Madness’ Confirms Star-Studded Cast as Production Hits London
LONDON — The "nameless" anti-hero is officially back on the streets. Director Guy Ritchie has pulled back the curtain on the sprawling ensemble cast joining Jason Statham in Viva La Madness, the highly anticipated action-thriller currently filming on location in London.
The project, which reunites the Lock, Stock duo for their sixth collaboration, is an adaptation of J.J. Connolly’s novel—the literary sequel to Layer Cake. However, Ritchie has clarified that this film will stand as a "bold, standalone original" rather than a direct continuation of Matthew Vaughn’s 2004 cult classic.
The Heavy Hitters
To populate the film's trans-Atlantic criminal underworld, Ritchie has assembled a "who's who" of gritty British icons and international stars. Leading the charge is the return of the "hard man" himself, Vinnie Jones, marking his fifth outing with Ritchie and his first time sharing the screen with Statham since Mean Machine.
The confirmed supporting cast includes:
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Jason Isaacs: Fresh off a celebrated turn in The White Lotus, the Harry Potter alum joins as a high-stakes player in the London underworld.
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Camila Mendes: In a departure from her Riverdale roots, Mendes reportedly plays a pivotal role in the Caribbean-set sequences of the film.
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Ben Foster: The Emmy winner (Hell or High Water) is set to bring his trademark intensity to the production.
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Babs Olusanmokun: Reteaming with Ritchie following The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare.
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Jonny Lee Miller: The Elementary star continues his recent collaboration with the director after 2023’s The Covenant.
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Raúl Alejandro: The Latin music superstar makes a major cinematic leap in an undisclosed role.
From the Caribbean to the Cartels
While plot details are being guarded with typical "Guy Ritchie" secrecy, the film follows Statham's character—originally played by Daniel Craig—as he attempts to escape his criminal past in the Caribbean. Naturally, he is sucked back into the fray by two London heavyweights, leading to a globetrotting journey involving high-tech electronic fraud, money laundering, and Venezuelan cartels.
“This isn't a nostalgia trip,” a source close to the production shared. “Guy and J.J. [Connolly] have rewritten the rules for this one. It’s got the wit fans expect, but with a modern, high-tech edge that reflects where the world is in 2026.”
A Global Distribution Play
The film is being produced by Statham’s Punch Palace Productions alongside Black Bear, which will handle the domestic U.S. release. In a major move for the project’s global reach, Amazon MGM Studios has secured the rights to distribute the film in most international territories.
Production is expected to continue through the spring, moving from the gray skies of London to the tropical locales of the Caribbean. For fans of the "Ritchie-verse," the return of the Statham-Jones-Ritchie trifecta feels like a homecoming for British crime cinema.
