There’s finally some movement on long-awaited Viva La Madness. The film is based on J.J. Connelly’s literary follow-up to 2004 novel, “Layer Cake” which preambled the 2011 Daniel Craig starrer.
Reports back in October touted a 2026 production start with a concept being treated as a standalone instead of a sequel. Additionally, Jason Statham, fresh from the set of Timo Tjahjanto’s recently-wrapped The Beekeeper 2, was eyed for the role over the years in the project’s development and is currently set to star.
On Wednesday, the stewards at production outfit Black Bear have announced a cast line-up joining the actor, who is also producing via his Punch Palace label. Black Bear will release domestically with Amazon MGM handling global.
Read the official text below:
Black Bear has announced the ensemble cast of Guy Ritchie’s Viva La Madness, led by Jason Statham. New additions to the film, which began production this January, are Emmy nominee Jason Isaacs, Vinnie Jones, Babs Olusanmokun, Camila Mendes, Emmy winner Ben Foster, Jonny Lee Miller, and Raúl Alejandro. Viva La Madness is written by Guy Ritchie and JJ Connolly, with Ritchie set to direct, based on Connolly’s novel of the same name. Viva La Madness was developed by Statham for Punch Palace Productions and Thomas Benski for Lumina Studios, who are producing alongside Guy Ritchie and Ivan Atkinson for Toff Guy Films and John Friedberg for Black Bear. Black Bear will distribute the film domestically, while Amazon MGM Studios will distribute it in the majority of international territories.
While plot details are being kept under wraps, Ritchie’s Viva La Madness is a stand-alone, original film, not a continuation of any previous work.
Isaacs was nominated for an Emmy, Golden Globe, and Actors Award for his recent role in the third season of The White Lotus. He also earned another Golden Globe nomination for his lead role in The State Within, and he won a Film Independent Spirit Award for his work in Fran Kranz’ Mass. Isaacs is perhaps best known for playing Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter film franchise. He also starred in the Academy Award-nominated The Patriot, Armando Iannucci’s The Death of Stalin, and Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down. His many television credits include the Showtime hit Brotherhood, Paramount+’s Star Trek: Discovery, Netflix’s The OA, and the BBC’s Case Histories.
Viva La Madness marks Jones’ fifth collaboration with Ritchie, following the iconic Snatch; Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels; Mean Machine, which also starred Statham; and the Emmy-nominated series The Gentlemen. Jones also starred in Brett Ratner’s X-Men: The Last Stand and opposite Bradley Cooper in The Midnight Meat Train.
Olusanmokun is an actor best known for his role in Denis Villeneuve’s Academy Award-winning Dune, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, and Ritchie’s The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare. He is multilingual, fluent in Portuguese, French, and Yoruba, and a third-degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt.
Mendes rose to prominence for her lead role in the long-running CW hit Riverdale. More recently, she starred in Prime Video’s Música, Netflix’s Do Revenge and Dangerous Lies, the Film Independent Spirit Award Winner Palm Springs, and Prime Video’s Upgraded, which she also executive-produced. Mendes appears in a supporting role in the upcoming film Idiotka, which she produced under her Honor Role banner. In June, Mendes will star in the highly anticipated summer tentpole MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE
Foster has starred in several Academy Award®-nominated films, including Hell or High Water, 3:10 to Yuma, and The Messenger. He recently starred alongside Sydney Sweeney in Christy, and in Barry Levinson’s The Survivor, for which he was nominated for an Emmy.
Miller recently worked with Ritchie on The Covenant. He has been nominated for two Emmy Awards, for his roles in Emmy-winning The Crown and Dexter. He also starred in the thriller film Mindhunters, the Jane Austen adaptation Mansfield Park, and both Trainspotting and T2 Trainspotting. For the small screen, his credits include starring opposite Lucy Liu in the long-running, Emmy-nominated series Elementary, for CBS.
Alejandro is a Grammy-winning, multi-platinum recording artist. Beyond emerging as one of the most influential voices in global Latin music, he has appeared in multiple series for Netflix, including The Signing, Sky Rojo, and International Emmy winner The Queen of Flow.
Viva La Madness is Black Bear’s latest collaboration with Guy Ritchie and Jason Statham. Other upcoming Black Bear films include SHELTER, a high-octane action thriller starring Jason Statham and directed by Ric Roman Waugh, in theaters January 30, 2026, IN THE GREY, the original action film written and directed by Guy Ritchie, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Henry Cavill, and Eiza González, in theaters on April 10, 2026. TUNER, the highly acclaimed romantic thriller starring Leo Woodall, Dustin Hoffman, and Havana Rose Liu in theaters on May 22, 2026, THE RIVALS OF AMZIAH KING, the character-focused crime thriller set against the backdrop of rural Oklahoma starring Matthew McConaughey, in theaters on August 14, 2026, SPA WEEKEND, the female ensemble comedy starring Leslie Mann, Isla Fisher, Michelle Buteau, and Anna Faris, in theaters on September 4, 2026, and Guy Ritchie’s WIFE & DOG (working title) starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Rosamund Pike and Anthony Hopkins, in theaters on October 23, 2026. Black Bear also recently produced and financed Clint Bentley’s TRAIN DREAMS, currently streaming on Netflix and has received four Academy Award nominations, including one for Best Picture, as well as WGA and BAFTA nominations.
Isaacs is repped by Strand Entertainment, Gersh and Independent Talent Group. Jones is represented by Elevate. Olusanmokun is represented by Markham, Froggatt, and Irwin. Mendes is represented by CAA and Luber Roklin Entertainment. Foster is represented by Range Media Partners. Miller is represented by UTA. Alejandro is represented by UTA.