Guy Ritchie has officially signed on to direct Road House 2, with Jake Gyllenhaal reprising his role as former UFC fighter Dalton. The sequel marks the third collaboration between Ritchie and Gyllenhaal, and their second with Amazon MGM Studios following Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant. The pair also teamed up for the upcoming action thriller In the Grey.
Will Beall (Bad Boys: Ride or Die, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F) is writing the screenplay, though plot details remain under wraps. The film is being produced by Charles Roven and Alex Gartner of Atlas Entertainment, alongside Gyllenhaal through his Nine Stories banner and Josh McLaughlin. Ivan Atkinson will serve as executive producer.
The first Road House, a reboot of the 1989 cult classic starring Patrick Swayze, debuted on Prime Video in March 2024 and quickly became a streaming juggernaut. Gyllenhaal played Dalton, an ex-fighter who takes a job as a bouncer at a Florida Keys bar, only to be caught in a violent clash with bikers, outlaws, and a shady developer. Real-life MMA fighter Conor McGregor made his acting debut in the film.
The film shattered viewership records for Amazon MGM Studios, drawing nearly 80 million global viewers in its first eight weeks — making it the studio’s most-watched original film debut, according to then-studio head Jennifer Salke. The sequel was confirmed last summer during Amazon’s inaugural Upfronts presentation.
Ritchie replaces Doug Liman, director of the first installment, who voiced his displeasure with the film’s shift from a planned theatrical release to streaming. Liman previously criticized the studio for the change in distribution following Amazon’s acquisition of MGM.
Ritchie’s directing résumé includes box office hits like Disney’s Aladdin (which grossed over $1 billion globally), and the stylish British crime comedy The Gentlemen, now a hit Netflix series entering its second season. He recently launched MobLand on Paramount+, a mob drama starring Tom Hardy, Helen Mirren, and Pierce Brosnan. His next film, Fountain of Youth, featuring John Krasinski, Natalie Portman, and Eiza González, is set to premiere May 23 on Apple TV+. He’s also working on Wife & Dog, a black comedy starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Rosamund Pike, and Anthony Hopkins.
Representation:
- Guy Ritchie: WME
- Jake Gyllenhaal: WME, Goodman Genow
- Will Beall: WME, Entertainment 360, McKuin Frankel
