One of modern cinema’s most successful and celebrated filmmakers, Guy Ritchie is widely regarded as one of Britain’s finest directors. Known for his trademark calling cards in the vein of colorful characters, electric dialogue, and intricately interconnected narratives, the director has also gained a reputation for working with prominent actors on multiple occasions throughout his career. Ranging from the star of the film in question to memorable supporting characters, many of the actors who appear in multiple Ritchie films are just as synonymous with his best movies as the director himself.

Breathing life into some of Ritchie’s finest movie characters along the way, the Englishman’s most frequent collaborators range from veteran character actors to Hollywood’s most famous and instantly recognizable A-Listers. Featuring across a wide range of genres, from medieval fantasy to crime comedies and everything in between, many standout actors even owe their current Hollywood standing to a breakout role in a Ritchie movie.

10

Charlie Hunnam

King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword, The Gentlemen

While Charlie Hunnam still finds himself inextricably linked with his career-best role as Jax Teller on Sons of Anarchy, the Englishman has become one of Guy Ritchie’s most called-upon names over the last decade. The man set to play Ed Gein in the third season of Netflix’s Monster began his creative relationship with the director in 2017, playing the eponymous character in King Arthur: Legend of the Sword.

While Ritchie’s take on the Arthurian legend proved to be a critical and commercial flop, Hunnam’s second collaboration with the director fared much better. 2020 saw the Papillon star step into the boots of The Gentleman’s deuteragonist, Raymond Smith, the OCD-afflicted right-hand man to Matthew McConaughey’s Mickey Pearson. Garnering glowing reviews, the success of the slick crime-comedy even led to the commission of a lauded spin-off television series also directed by Ritchie.

9

Jared Harris

Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows, The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

Best known for his acclaimed television roles in the likes of Mad Men, The Crown, and Chernobyl, Jared Harris is another prominent British A-Lister renowned for his frequent appearances in Guy Ritchie’s movies. While the son of cinematic icon Richard Harris is only credited with two live-action performances in the director’s films, he also has a cameo as Professor Moriarty in 2009’s Sherlock Holmes, lending his voice to the film’s home release after signing on for the sequel.

The actor would go on to shine as Holmes’ nemesis in 2011’s Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. One of Harris’ best movies, his sinister turn as the Machiavellian criminal mastermind was lauded by critics as one of the film’s most impressive attributes. However, despite featuring in some of Ritchie’s most celebrated work, it’s been more than a decade since the actor’s last appearance in one of the director’s movies. Harris’ most recent collaboration with Ritchie saw him play Napoleon Solo’s handler, Adrian Sanders, in 2015’s spy flick, The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

8

Vinnie Jones

Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, & The Gentlemen (Television Series)

Renowned as one of the most aggressive footballers in Premier League history, former Leeds United hard-man Vinnie Jones has parlayed his terrifying on-field reputation into a long-running and successful creative partnership with Guy Ritchie. The Englishman is credited with two of Ritchie’s most memorable characters in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels’ Big Chris and Snatch’s Bullet-Tooth Tony.

The Gentlemen was renewed for a second season in August 2024.

Jones’ intimidating build and ruthless aura made him the perfect fit to play these two legendary enforcers, complementing his iconic bows with some wickedly dark humor along the way. Furthermore, the Englishman is the only actor who has appeared in Ritchie’s films who also features in his spin-off television series. Breathing life into a considerably more mellow charge in his older age, Jones joined The Gentlemen’s cast as Geoffrey Seacombe, the long-time gamekeeper of Halstead Manor.

7

Henry Cavill

The Man From U.N.C.L.E., The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare, & In The Grey

Bursting into the mainstream with his portrayal of Superman in 2013’s Man of Steel, Henry Cavill has gravitated towards the spy genre over the last decade, a creative choice that has seen him touted as a serious contender to play the next James Bond. It’s also seen him cross paths with Guy Ritchie on multiple occasions, beginning with his portrayal of Napoleon Solo in 2015’s The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

Cavill is set to play an “extraction specialist” in In the Grey, tasked with getting a female negotiator to safety.

It would be nearly a decade before the two men worked together again, but Cavill would return to the fold in the leading role of Gus March-Phillips in 2024’s The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare. The actor’s performance earned him positive reviews, despite the film’s unenviable status as a box office bomb. Cavill is also set to reunite with Ritchie once again in his upcoming movie, In the Grey, starring alongside his Ungentlemanly Warfare co-star, Eiza González.

6

Eiza González

The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare, Fountain Of Youth, & In The Grey

3 Body Problem star Eiza González represents an anomaly in the sense that while she is one of Ritchie’s most frequent collaborators on paper, two of the director’s movies starring the Mexican actress have yet to be released. González’s only appearance in a Ritchie film to date has come in 2024’s action-comedy The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, where she played real-life Special Operations Executive and ice-cool femme fatale, Marjorie Stewart.

However, this appears set to change in short order. González is slated to play the role of Esme in 2025’s Fountain of Youth, a character described by the actress as “a walking weapon” and “an enigma.” She has also been cast alongside Henry Cavill and Jake Gyllenhaal in Ritchie’s subsequent project, In the Grey, an upcoming action thriller that has yet to be given a release date.

5

Hugh Grant

The Man From U.N.C.L.E., The Gentlemen, & Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre

Hugh Grant’s transformation from a romantic-comedy staple to an established character actor has been a joy to behold, a status quo that has arguably never been more apparent than in his work with Guy Ritchie. The Heretic star first appeared in 2015’s The Man from U.N.C.L.E. as MI6 operative Alexander Waverly, a role that was lauded by critics as a rare bright spot in an otherwise forgettable spy film.

However, it was 2020’s The Gentlemen that saw Grant truly shine. Playing completely against type as the seedy journalist, Fletcher, the Bridget Jones alum turned in a masterful bow that saw him flex his comedic muscles in endlessly entertaining fashion. Producing another excellent blend of wit and charisma as Greg Simmonds, the main villain in 2023’s consistently underrated Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre, Grant remains one of Ritchie’s most fruitful modern creative partners.

4

Mark Strong

Revolver, RocknRolla, & Sherlock Holmes

Primarily known for his portrayal of cold and calculating villains, a number of Mark Strong’s best movies have been directed by Guy Ritchie. First appearing in 2005’s critically lambasted Revolver as the ᴅᴇᴀᴅly ᴀssᴀssin, Sorter, Strong would return in 2008’s fan-favorite crime-comedy, RocknRolla, taking on the role of the movie’s narrator and career criminal, Archy.

Appearing in three Guy Ritchie movies to date, Mark Strong has only worked with one other director on more occasions. The Englishman boasts four collaborations with Kick-ᴀss and Kingsman director, Matthew Vaughn.

However, the Englishman’s portrayal of Lord Henry Blackwood in 2009’s Sherlock Holmes remains his most acclaimed Ritchie body of work to date. A sinister occultist and serial killer who apparently rises from the ᴅᴇᴀᴅ after being captured by Holmes and Watson, Strong’s menacing villain was well received by fans and critics alike. Blackwood was lauded as a worthy and convincing adversary for an iconic character like Holmes, a status quo due in no small part to Strong’s chilling performance.

3

Jude Law

Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows, & King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword

Enemy at the Gates star Jude Law has featured in three separate Guy Ritchie movies, with the caveat that he plays the same character on two different occasions. The two-time Academy Award nominee was cast as Doctor John Watson alongside Robert Downey Jr.’s Sherlock Holmes in both of Ritchie’s films focusing on the legendary detective and his right-hand man, with the leading duo’s superb chemistry carrying both movies in ᴀssured fashion.

Regrettably, Law’s most recent collaboration with Ritchie didn’t measure up to his pair of excellent performances as Watson. The Englishman played the tyrannical King Vortigern, the main antagonist of 2017’s fantasy-epic, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword. However, while the film was originally intended to be the first in a series of six, dismal reviews and a disastrous box office return meant plans for any sequels were canceled in short order.

2

Eddie Marsan

Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows, The Gentleman, Wrath Of Man, & Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre

Appearing in an array of minor roles throughout Guy Ritchie’s movies, Hancock alum Eddie Marsan may not be the first name that springs to mind when it comes to individuals that the Englishman has cast over and over again. However, closer examination of the actor’s film credits reveals that no other performer has appeared in more of the director’s movies since Ritchie began his career.

…Marsan remains one of the filmmaker’s most reliable supporting faces to this day.

Primarily known for his role as the inept but well-meaning Inspector Lestrade in Ritchie’s duo of Sherlock Holmes movies, the veteran character actor also boasts minor appearances in The Gentleman, Wrath of Man, and Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre. Featuring in five separate Ritchie productions since their first collaboration in 2009, Marsan remains one of the filmmaker’s most reliable supporting faces to this day.

1

Jason Statham

Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, Revolver, Wrath Of Man, & Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre

The director’s most high-profile and frequent collaborator, Jason Statham is virtually synonymous with Guy Ritchie’s movies as of 2025. The Crank star made his first major movie appearance as the fast-talking Bacon in Ritchie’s feature film debut, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, and has never looked back, producing another superb turn as the boxing promoter, Turkish, in 2000’s iconic follow-up outing, Snatch.

The duo put their artistic collaboration on hold following the negative press for 2005’s much-maligned Revolver, before Statham returned to the fold with leading roles in the revenge thriller, Wrath of Man, and the spy-comedy, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre. The quintessential Guy Ritchie actor, courtesy of his hard-man demeanor and exaggerated Cockney accent, Statham would appear to be a near certainty to feature in more of the director’s films in the future.