The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (film)

Producer John Davis optioned the film rights to the 1960s TV series in 1993, setting up a development deal for an adaptation with Warner Bros. and series producer Norman Felton. Davis has estimated that he commissioned 12 or 14 different scripts over the course of 20 years, with writers Jim and John Thomas, John Requa, Glenn Ficarra, and Scott Z. Burns. Quentin Tarantino was briefly attached following the success of Pulp Fiction, but opted to make Jackie Brown instead. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. continued to labor in development hell with directors Matthew Vaughn and David Dobkin.[7] Steven Soderbergh was attached to direct Scott Z. Burns' screenplay, with production slated to begin in March 2012. Executives from Warner Bros. wanted the budget to stay below $60 million, but Soderbergh felt that amount would not be adequate to fund the 1960s-era sets, props, and international settings required for the film.[8] Emily Blunt was nearly cast as the female lead,[9] but she left the project shortly after Soderbergh departed in November 2011.[10]

Guy Ritchie signed on in March 2013.[11] On July 31, 2013, it was announced that Ritchie's adaptation would start filming in September 2013 in London and Italy.[12][13] The final production budget was approximately $75 million US.

Armie Hammer (Ilya Kuryakin), Henry Cavill (Napoleon Solo), Alicia Vikander (Gaby Teller) and Elizabeth Debicki (Victoria Vinciguerra) at 2015 San Diego Comic-Con.

In November 2010, George Clooney showed interest in the film,[14] and was in talks for the lead role of Napoleon Solo, but he left in September 2011 due to a recurring back injury.[15][16] After Clooney's departure, actors including Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ryan Gosling, Channing Tatum, Alexander Skarsgård, Ewan McGregor, Robert Pattinson, Matt Damon, Christian Bale, Michael Fassbender, Bradley Cooper, Leonardo DiCaprio, Joel Kinnaman, Russell Crowe, Chris Pine, Ryan Reynolds, and Jon Hamm were considered for the lead role.[17] On March 18, 2013, Tom Cruise was in early talks to take the lead in the film.[11] Armie Hammer was cast in the second lead role as Illya Kuryakin on April 24, 2013, with Cruise set as Solo.[18] Swedish actress Alicia Vikander joined the film on May 8, 2013, as the female lead.[19] On May 23, 2013, Cruise dropped out of the film, due to his commitment to Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation.[20][21] British actor Henry Cavill replaced Cruise.[22][23][24] Elizabeth Debicki was cast in a femme fatale role on July 31, 2013; Rose Byrne and Charlize Theron were earlier considered for the same part.[25] On August 8, 2013, Hugh Grant joined the cast as Alexander Waverly, the head of United Network Command for Law and Enforcement (U.N.C.L.E).[26] Jared Harris was cast as Sanders on September 4, 2013,[27] and Luca Calvani was cast as a villain, Alexander.[28] Simona Caparrini was also cast to play Contessa.[29]

Principal photography on the film commenced on September 9, 2013.[30] In October 2013, filming was being under way at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich, Royal Victoria Docks, London and Goodwood Motor Racing Circuit in West Sussex, UK.

Two locations stood in place for Berlin sites on either side of the wall: the public toilet fight between Solo and Kuryakin was shot in Regent's Park in London, while the car chase during the movie's first act was shot in Chatham Historic Dockyard, Kent UK.[31][32][33]

Director Guy Ritchie finalized the script throughout production: "He's quite intuitive and tends to constantly rewrite stuff, which he does even when they're shooting. He'll rewrite things in the morning if they're shooting that day, working with the actors if something doesn't feel right." says long-term collaborator David Allcock.[34]

The musical score for The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was composed by Daniel Pemberton.[35] A soundtrack album was released by WaterTower Music on August 7, 2015.[36] A behind the scenes video was also released.[37] The musical score received many glowing reviews with the LA Times noting "it is composer Daniel Pemberton who in some ways seems to understand the idea of the movie even better than Ritchie, his score featuring breathy flutes, twangy guitar, spooky harpsichord and pounding drums and organ capturing the mixture of pastiche, homage and a twist of the new in a way the rest of the film rarely matches."[38]

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. was released on DVD and Blu-ray on November 17, 2015, by Warner Home Video.[41]

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. grossed $45.4 million in North America and $64.4 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $109.8 million, against a production budget of $75 million.[4] The Hollywood Reporter estimated the film lost the studio at least $80 million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues.[42]

The film grossed $900,000 from its early Thursday screenings and $4.8 million on its opening day. In its opening weekend, the film grossed $13.4 million, which was about $5 million below expectations, finishing third at the box office.[43] In its second weekend it dropped 45% to $7.3 million, finishing fifth.[44]

It opened in Russia with $3.1 million.[45] In the United Kingdom, it opened alongside Sony Pictures' Pixels, earning $2.3 million, debuting at number 4 for Friday-to-Sunday, while Pixels was at No. 1 with $4.2 million, including previews during the week. Warner Bros did not preview The Man from U.N.C.L.E.[45] Across Asia, it generated $2.7 million from six countries and $1.7 million in Australia.[45]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 68% based on 291 reviews, with an average rating of 6.20/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "The Man from U.N.C.L.E. tries to distract from an unremarkable story with charismatic stars and fizzy set pieces, adding up to an uneven action thriller with just enough style to overcome its lack of substance."[41] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 56 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[46] On CinemaScore, audiences gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale.[3]