Guy Ritchie‘s latest streaming success marks the conclusion of an era for the renowned director. Earlier this year, Ritchie revisited the world of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, producing and co-directing Prime Video’s eight-part detective drama, Young Sherlock. Starring Hero Fiennes Tiffin as the adventurous sleuth, Young Sherlock delves into a more reckless, inexperienced version of the world’s greatest detective as he becomes entangled in a complex criminal conspiracy involving Oxford University, biochemical weapons, Chinese royalty, and the tragic death of his younger sister.

The series is rich with Ritchie’s signature style, featuring an outrageous yet engaging narrative, quick-witted dialogue, fast-paced action, and intriguing characters — Dónal Finn’s youthful portrayal of James Moriarty stands out — along with memorable music choices that contribute to the show’s distinct atmosphere. Notably, Young Sherlock isn’t Ritchie’s only recent success in television; it appears that the director has found a new rhythm in the streaming arena, shifting priorities from the big screen to the small screen.

The Era Of Guy Ritchie As A Movie-Exclusive Filmmaker Is Over

While Ritchie has traditionally been known for feature films, directing hits like Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, the Robert Downey Jr.-led Sherlock Holmes films, a movie remake of The Man from U.N.C.L.E., King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Disney’s live-action Aladdin, and many others, he has successfully transitioned into television. In the past two years alone, Ritchie has worked on three high-profile drama series, including a reimagined version of The Gentlemen, gangster drama MobLand — featuring Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, and Tom Hardy — and, of course, Young Sherlock.

Ritchie remains active in film as well. His latest project, In The Grey, stars Henry Cavill, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Eiza González as elite operatives tasked with reclaiming a billion-dollar fortune from a ruthless tyrant and has just been released in theaters. Additionally, his upcoming film, Wife and Dog, boasts an impressive cast including Tomás Paredes, Rosamund Pike, Anthony Hopkins, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paddy Considine, and James Norton. Nonetheless, it’s clear that Ritchie’s era as a solely film director and producer is effectively over.

All three of Ritchie’s recent shows are set to return for a second season. Both The Gentlemen and MobLand will return for their second seasons later this year, while Prime Video announced that Young Sherlock has officially been renewed for season 2 just weeks after its full release on the platform; Ritchie will direct the first episode. If Ritchie can continue to balance both streaming and film projects successfully, he will further expand his already impressive legacy.

The TV Format Has Benefited Guy Ritchie

Ritchie has always excelled at character development and action-driven storytelling. His narratives feature compelling villains and antiheroes while exploring Britain’s oppressive class system, corruption’s power dynamics, and greed’s inherent allure. This holds true for both his films and streaming series. Recently, however, it appears that Ritchie’s typical themes have found a better fit within long-form storytelling. Eight or ten episode seasons allow him and his co-writers ample time to develop intricate criminal plots and explore character roles within them.

While comparing financial success between theatrical films and streaming series is challenging, the fact that all three of Ritchie’s shows have received second-season renewals speaks volumes about their popularity with audiences. For example, The Gentlemen spent ten weeks in Netflix’s Global Top 10 TV Shows chart from early March to mid-May 2024 (via What’s On Netflix). Similarly, Young Sherlock became Prime Video’s number one show worldwide just five days after its release and remained in the Top 10 for at least a month.

Ritchie’s recent film releases have not enjoyed similar success. Notably, when examining his theatrical releases around the same period as The Gentlemen, there is a clear shift. For instance, 2023’s The Covenant grossed only $21 million against a reported $55 million budget. Similarly, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare earned just under $30 million at the worldwide box office on a reported $60 million budget. Although Ritchie’s Apple TV original movie, Fountain of Youth, achieved some success on streaming charts, it did not resonate with audiences like his shows did.

Critically speaking, Ritchie’s shows have performed better than his latest films as well. While The Covenant received positive reviews with an 82% score on Rotten Tomatoes, this cannot be said for either Fountain of Youth or In The Grey. Currently, Fountain of Youth‘s Tomatometer score sits at a lowly 35%, while In The Grey‘s critics’ score is only 44%. In contrast,The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare falls between these extremes at 68%.

The scores for Ritchie’s shows have been much more consistent. For instance,The Gentlemen sits at 75%, MobLand at 76%, andYoung Sherlock sits at an impressive 84%. Additionally, audience scores reflect a smaller divide between critics and viewers for Ritchie’s streaming series (with audience scores at 84%, 67%, and 83%, respectively).

Guy Ritchie Has A Surprising Streak On Streaming Services

A number of Hollywood’s top directors and producers secure exclusive long-term deals with streaming platforms. For example, Netflix has maintained a longstanding partnership with Shonda Rhimes due to her success withBridgerton. Following the conclusion ofStranger Things, The Duffer Brothers will transition from Netflix to Paramount. However,Guy Ritchie has taken a different approach to his streaming projects. All three shows he has worked on have been produced by different studios.