An auteur of British crime capers, Guy Ritchie lends his signature style to Netflix's eight-parter, The Gentlemen.
Enlisting Theo James, Kaya Scodelario, Ray Winstone, Vinnie Jones and more to expand upon the universe established in his 2019 action comedy film of the same name; Ritchie’s latest feat follows aristocrat turned weed dealer, Eddie Horniman (Theo James).
After inheriting his late father’s industrial cannabis empire, Eddie becomes embroiled in London’s criminal underworld and in his quest to survive, tangos with sociopathic boxing promoter, Henry Collins, played by the ever-magnetic Max Beesley.
© NetflixAhead of the show’s premiere, HELLO! caught up with the actor and musician at the Corinthia Hotel in January. After collaborating with Ritchie on Operation Fortune (2023) and now, The Gentlemen, Max revealed what it’s really like working with the indomitable director.
“Well, on this I didn't work with Guy [Ritchie] because I came in for the second half of the show,” he clarified. “But I did work with Guy on Operation Fortune, and I would say I have thought about this quite a bit.
© Getty“Working with him is like if Miles Davis calls you as a musician and says we're playing Carnegie Hall on Friday and we're gonna open up with All the Things You Are and it’s going to be a nice and easy opening. You walk on stage and he says, ‘Scrap that. We're going to play Giant Steps very fast and you're doing the first four choruses solo.’”
Describing Ritchie’s projects as “high-pressure, high-octane” gigs, Max continued: “It’s on you when you work with Guy because he's constantly thinking very creatively, and it swings and you have to be very pliable.
© Getty“But I love that, I really enjoyed that. I love working with him. I think he's excellent and he's a great director. It's a high-pressure, high-octane gig but when it works, it's lovely. It's quite musical as well. He writes musically with his dialogue. So it's something that I really like with his world and his method.”
Thrown into the ring with an impressive circle of actors, most of Max’s scenes are with Theo James this time around. “Theo and I got on extremely well, and we had a very good shorthand with each other in the scenes,” noted the star. “I'd seen Theo in The White Lotus and I thought he was excellent.”
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As for the rest of the cast, Max has been good friends with Ray Winstone and Vinnie Jones for years, which was a nice bonus when he signed on.
© NetflixAsked who he was most excited to work with, Max replied: “With Giancarlo [Esposito]. I was like ‘It would be great for them [characters Henry Collins and Uncle Stan] to meet’, but it makes sense that they don't in this first season.
“I think he's a phenomenal actor. And more importantly, he's one of the nicest guys I've ever met. So, yeah, it'd be nice to do some dancing with him. I think he's a wonderful actor. So in answer to your question, Giancarlo was on the top of the list there.”
All eight episodes of The Gentlemen are now available to stream on Netflix
