Giancarlo Esposito's Stanley looking unamused in The GentlemenImage via Netflix
By
Liam Gaughan
Published Feb 18, 2026, 9:09 PM EST
Liam Gaughan is a film and TV writer at Collider. He has been writing film reviews and news coverage for ten years. Between relentlessly adding new titles to his watchlist and attending as many screenings as he can, Liam is always watching new movies and television shows.
In addition to reviewing, writing, and commentating on both new and old releases, Liam has interviewed talent such as Mark Wahlberg, Jesse Plemons, Sam Mendes, Billy Eichner, Dylan O'Brien, Luke Wilson, and B.J. Novak. Liam aims to get his spec scripts produced and currently writes short films and stage plays. He lives in Allentown, PA.
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Guy Ritchie has had quite the comeback in the 2020s, and has become more productive than at any other point in his career. While the late 2010s featured him as the director behind poorly received blockbusters like King Arthur: Legend of the Sword and Aladdin, Ritchie kicked off the new decade with six new mid-budget genre films, and he has three more on the way. It feels as if Ritchie is returning to his roots by making smart, snarky gangster stories with his trademark non-linear sensibilities, and he’s even managed to extend that style into television. The Gentlemen isn’t just one of the most entertaining projects that Ritchie has ever been involved with, but it's a distillation of what makes him such a unique storyteller.
The first film in this third wave of Ritchie’s career was The Gentlemen, a fun heist thriller with a collection of handsome dudes, blackly funny ultra-violence, and an overcomplicated plot involving illegal drug smuggling. While it was great to see Ritchie make something that felt like a deliberate throwback to his work on Snatch, The Gentlemen series is more than just a retelling of the film, as it is set in the same universe and goes far more in-depth with its analysis of family dysfunction. Given that Ritchie likes to sneak in bite-sized escapades and jokes into his stories, The Gentlemen has proven that he just might be better fit to make prestige television than to continue doing feature films.
Netflix's 'The Gentlemen' Isn't a Remake, but an Expansion of Guy Ritchie's Movie
While the film featured Matthew McConaughey as an Oklahoma drug kingpin, The Gentlemen introduces a new family empire with the Horniman, a British dynasty that controls a powerful cannabis farm. After the death of the family’s patriarch, Archibald (Edward Fox), the fortune is passed down to his youngest son, Eddie (Theo James), bypassing his older heir, Freddie (Daniel Ings), altogether. Eddie is a former veteran of the British Army who knows a thing or two about maintaining relationships with dangerous organizations, but he’s shocked to find that his father owes a massive debt to the Scouse drug dealer Tommy Dixon (Peter Serafinowicz).
As he enters the illicit world of underground drug smuggling, Eddie finds both allies and adversaries; while the rival drug kingpin Bobby Glass (Ray Winstone) wants to take back the land that Eddie has now used to curate his farms, the incarcerated gangster’s daughter Susan (Kaya Scodelario) might be able to provide the Hornimans with a truce. However, both families are threatened by the encroaching danger of Stanley Johnson (Giancarlo Esposito), an American billionaire who is desperate to buy them out by any means necessary.
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Posts By Liam GaughanThe Gentlemen succeeds because the series paints a colorful portrayal of the different parties involved in the illegal trade, which is treated as a prestige family business. While Eddie has worked for the good of his country through both the Army and the United Nations’ peacekeeping force, he surprisingly finds that handling his father’s business requires the same set of skills. He is trying to protect the family fortune, and is also attempting to soothe tensions and avoid any violent conflict.
This aspect of the story allowed Ritchie to expand the material beyond the action that would need to be included within a single film, and allowed for a greater exploration of the interconnected world. Some of the most compelling parts of The Gentlemen are simply observations about the various gamekeepers, distributors, security forces, and corrupt law enforcement officials involved in any of Eddie’s business moves. The series moves like a chess game, which makes it all the more exciting when Ritchie breaks out into his trademark slapstick humor.
Netflix's 'The Gentlemen' Is Guy Ritchie at His Best
Even in his worst films, Ritchie has always had an eye for casting, and The Gentlemen benefits from a cast who elevates their characters beyond stereotypes. James has always been a more dynamic actor than the generic heartthrob that he was pigeonholed as early on in his career, and he turns Eddie into a fascinating character filled with contradictions. Eddie is ruthless in cutting out those who are disloyal to him, but he also considers that he has the potential to change his family legacy and redefine what a “gentleman” can be. Scodelario’s performance is perfectly matched to his because Susie is also trying to break out from under the shadow of a highly powerful father, and was ironically able to emulate his qualities after he was trapped in prison. The return of Bobby into Susie’s life doesn’t just make her loyalties ambiguous, but drives a wedge against the more positive influence that Eddie had on her.
CL Report: Subscribe and never miss what matters
Dive into the world of entertainment with Collider, delivering the latest news, reviews, and exclusive updates from movies, TV, and pop culture Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.The Gentlemen has just as many twists and turns as any of Ritchie’s films, and the series is straight up hilarious, willing to go far for the sake of an absurdist joke. He may be currently stealing scenes on A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, but Ings is just as great on The Gentlemen because Freddie seems to always find a way to undercut his brother’s strategies — even if his intentions are pure. While the first season of The Gentlemen proved that Ritchie has the capability of building an entire universe, the impending second season might ensure that the series goes down in history as his greatest achievement.
The Gentlemen
TV-MA
Comedy
Drama
Crime
Action
9
10
Release Date
2024 - 2026-00-00
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CL Report: Subscribe and never miss what matters
Dive into the world of entertainment with Collider, delivering the latest news, reviews, and exclusive updates from movies, TV, and pop culture Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.What To Watch
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