Kingsman (franchise)

Lore & Background

The Kingsman film franchise is based on the comic book series of the same name, which began with the 2012 comic book The Secret Service. Three sequels, Mum's the Word, The Big Exit and The Red Diamond, followed from 2016 to 2018. The series was initially known as The Secret Service before being rebranded after the first Kingsman film's release. The series was created by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons. It is set in Millar's shared universe, the 'Millarworld', first displayed when the celebrity kidnappings that take place in Kingsman Vol. 1 are referenced in Kick Ass: The Dave Lizewski Years Book Four, culminating in the 2023 series Big Game, featuring Gary 'Eggsy' Unwin aiming to prevent Mindy McCready / Hit-Girl from being assassinated by the Fraternity, led by Wesley Gibson (from Wanted).

Reader's Guide

The Kingsman franchise has had a notable impact on the spy genre, blending comic book origins with film adaptations that have achieved both financial and critical success. The franchise began with the 2012 comic The Secret Service, created by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons, and expanded into a series of films directed by Matthew Vaughn. The first film, Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015), introduced audiences to a stylized, action-oriented take on espionage, featuring Colin Firth and Taron Egerton. The sequel, Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017), and the prequel The King's Man (2021) further developed the fictional universe. The franchise also includes video games, though they are unavailable in the UK, and a spin-off film, Argylle (2024). The comic series continued with Kingsman: The Red Diamond (2017) and the crossover Big Game (2023), which connected the Kingsman world to other Millarworld properties such as Kick-Ass and Wanted. The franchise's significance lies in its successful cross-media expansion and its role in revitalizing the spy genre with a mix of humor, violence, and stylish action.

Did You Know?

• The franchise is based on a comic book series created by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons, first released in 2012 by Marvel Comics.
• The first film, Kingsman: The Secret Service, was directed by Matthew Vaughn and co-written with Jane Goldman.
• The crossover comic Big Game, published in July 2023, features Gary 'Eggsy' Unwin and characters from Kick-Ass and Wanted.
• The spin-off film Argylle, released in February 2024, stars Henry Cavill as Agent Argylle of Kingsman.

Origins & Creative Conception

The Kingsman franchise traces its roots to a 2012 Marvel Comics release originally titled The Secret Service, created by writer Mark Millar and artist Dave Gibbons. The series was embedded within Millar's broader shared universe, Millarworld, a concept he developed alongside director Matthew Vaughn. The comic kept its working title of The Secret Service until the first film's release prompted a rebrand to Kingsman. Three sequels followed in the years after the movie: Mum's the Word, The Big Exit, and The Red Diamond, published between 2016 and 2018. The film adaptation itself sprang from a casual bar conversation between Millar and Vaughn, during which the two lamented that the spy genre had grown too grim and agreed they wanted to make a genuinely fun one. That lighthearted ambition became the creative engine driving an entire multimedia franchise spanning comics, feature films, and video games.

Production & Casting of the First Film

Bringing Kingsman: The Secret Service to the screen demanded a significant personal sacrifice from Vaughn, who stepped away from directing X-Men: Days of Future Past to free up his schedule. He called it a tough decision, reasoning that if he did not pursue the project, someone else would eventually make a fun spy movie and his screenplay would sit unproduced. Principal photography began in October 2013 across a range of London locations, including Deepcut in Surrey, the Alexandra Road Estate in Camden, Imperial College London, and the Black Prince Pub in Kennington, which doubled for fight scenes and a car chase. The reported budget sat at roughly one-third of Skyfall's $200 million. Colin Firth joined as veteran agent Harry Hart, Taron Egerton as the rough-edged recruit Eggsy, and Samuel L. Jackson as the villain, a role Jackson accepted partly to scratch a lifelong itch of playing a Bond-style antagonist. Sophie Cookson was cast as the female lead over more established names, and Mark Hamill appeared in a role that referenced his own character from the source comic.

Franchise Expansion & Multimedia Reach

Since its 2015 debut, Kingsman has grown into a sprawling multimedia property. The sequel Kingsman: The Golden Circle and the comic Kingsman: The Red Diamond both arrived in September 2017, while the prequel film The King's Man, starring Ralph Fiennes, followed in December 2021. Comic publishing shifted to Image Comics for titles including The Red Diamond and the 2023 crossover Big Game, while the films were distributed by 20th Century Studios. A spin-off film, Argylle, directed by Vaughn and co-starring Henry Cavill as Agent Argylle of Kingsman, was released in February 2024 through Universal Pictures and Apple Original Films. Video game adaptations have existed since 2012, though notably they have been unavailable for purchase in the United Kingdom. Film adaptations of the comics have also been published, cementing Kingsman as a franchise that actively spans multiple media formats simultaneously.

Millarworld & Crossover Legacy

One of Kingsman's most distinctive features is its deep integration into the Millarworld shared universe, a collaborative fictional world built by Mark Millar. The connection is not merely thematic but narrative: the celebrity kidnappings depicted in Kingsman Vol. 1 are explicitly referenced in Kick Ass: The Dave Lizewski Years Book Four, linking the two storylines directly. The 2023 comic Big Game brought this interconnection to a head, featuring Gary Eggsy Unwin attempting to protect Mindy McCready, also known as Hit-Girl from the Hit-Girl and Kick-Ass series, from an assassination plot orchestrated by the Fraternity, a group led by Wesley Gibson from the Wanted universe. This web of interconnected characters and stories transforms Kingsman from a standalone spy property into a node within a larger mythos, where agents, villains, and heroes from different Millarworld titles share a common narrative stage.