“Operation Fortune” stars steely Statham as Orson Fortune (Ritchie always had a flair for giddy character names), a super spy with a singular set of skills who is tasked with tracking down a stolen piece of technology (“something rather nasty,” according to the trailer). He’s trying to prevent it from getting on the open market and possibly into the wrong hands, specifically those of a billionaire armsdealer named Greg Simmonds (Hugh Grant). He might be a super spy named Fortune, but this certainly isn’t a one-man job. Despite an initial reluctance, Fortune assembles a crackerjack team of only the world’s best operatives, of course, played by Aubrey Plaza, Cary Elwes, and Bugzy Malone. Key to their covert, globe-trotting operation is movie star Danny Franscesco (Josh Hartnett), who is recruited as bait to lure his biggest fan, Simmonds.
As the trailer suggests, mayhem may be the only item on the menu, with Statham manifesting his usually cool yet rascally persona, once again in the driver’s seat of Ritchie’s luxury sportscar. His co-stars Grant and Hartnett are also repeat Ritchie collaborators, having appeared in “The Gentlemen” (2019) and “Wrath of Man,” respectively. And as the most intriguing new addition to the Ritchie troupe, Plaza, who cut her teeth primarily in television comedy, and has since broadened her repertoire, jumps into unadulterated big screen action moviemaking for the first time, lending her trademark deadpan humor. Expect the usual Ritchie flourishes, including twisty plotlines and high-stakes gamesmanship (the “ruse de guerre” in the title) all captured with his kinetic visual style. The director, who’s successfully graduated from economy class gangster mischief to studio tentpoles, co-wrote the script for “Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre” with Ivan Atkinson and Marn Davies. It’s scheduled to be released in the U.S. on January 21, 2022, by STXfilms. Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
