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Welcome back to the Layer Cake, son. Guy Ritchie and Jason Statham are teaming up once again — and this time, they’re bringing a familiar kind of British mayhem back to the big screen. Variety has confirmed the duo will reunite for Viva La Madness, a new action-thriller based on J.J. Connolly’s 2011 novel, the follow-up to Layer Cake. But before anyone starts calling it Layer Cake 2, the film is being billed as a stand-alone, original feature — not a direct sequel, spin-off, or continuation of Matthew Vaughn’s 2004 cult hit. So it’s kind of Layer Cake 2, kind of not. Like a slice of Layer Cake? Production is slated to begin in January 2026, with Ritchie writing and directing, and Statham currently the only confirmed cast member.
Viva La Madness marks the sixth collaboration between Ritchie and Statham, who first joined forces over 25 years ago on Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and later teamed up for Snatch, Revolver, Wrath of Man, and Operation Fortune. The project was initiated by Statham himself, alongside producer Thomas Benski (Gangs of London), through their companies Punch Palace Productions and Lumina Studios.
Plot details haven’t been released but fortunately for us, there’s a book we can look up. Connolly’s darkly comic novel follows an anonymous London drug dealer — simply known as X — navigating a web of sex, scams, and dirty money in the criminal underworld.
What Was ‘Layer Cake’ About?
The original Layer Cake film, based on Connolly’s 2000 debut novel, became a cult classic and helped launch Daniel Craig into global stardom. Indeed, it’s often cited as the movie that got him the role of James Bond in Casino Royale. Directed by Matthew Vaughn, it was known for its razor-sharp pacing, slick editing, and stylish depiction of London’s criminal underworld. Rumors of a Layer Cake sequel with Ritchie and Statham attached have been floating around for more than a decade — dating back to reports in 2013 that Statham would take over Craig’s role.
For Ritchie, Viva La Madness continues his return to British gangster storytelling — a genre that made him famous and that he’s recently revisited with The Gentlemen, its Netflix spinoff, the Paramount+ crime series MobLand, and his upcoming project Wife & Dog. Stay tuned to Collider for all the latest on the future of the sequel that isn’t a sequel, and on both Guy Ritchie and Jason Statham.
- Release Date
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June 3, 2005
- Runtime
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105 Minutes
- Director
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Matthew Vaughn
- Writers
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J.J. Connolly
- Producers
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Adam Bohling