Guy Ritchie claims he wasn’t worried about accepting an invitation to be a special guest at the Red Sea International Film festival on Saudi Arabia.
Speak against The Hollywood Reporter on day 2 of the second edition of the event in Jeddah and the morning after accepting one of the festival’s major honorary awards, the British director said that, rather than political considerations, he simply saw himself as interested in was in the creative world.
“Whatever I can do to encourage creativity, especially in my film world, I’m all for that,” he said. “I’m all for encouragement and the collaboration of culture.”
Although the festival tour was Ritchie’s first time in Saudi Arabia, he said he had been to the Middle East many times, having visited friends in Bahrain and also shot many of his films. Aladdin in Jordan. “Part of the future is here,” he noted.
Speaking of Aladdinwhile Ritchie did not directly comment on the infamous Oscars blow up earlier this year Will Smithwho played the ghost in Disney’s 2019 live-action box office hit, insisted his experience with the star has been nothing but a delight.
“I’ve never met a more beautiful man, and working with him was one of the most beautiful, amazing experiences I’ve ever had,” he said. “I never saw anything but the consummate, generous gentleman.”
Of Aladdin 2 now in pre-production, would he reconsider casting Smith again? Absolutely not. “I wouldn’t have a problem casting Will Smith in anything because, like I said, he was just the damn perfect gentleman,” he said.
Ritchie was at the Red Sea Film Festival he has taken a short three day break from shooting the small screen spin-off of his 2020 hit The Gentleman. While there were TV adaptations of both his debut Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and its follow-up Jerk, he said this project was “the only serious thing I’ve done on TV”, noting that he wrote and directed it. “And it’s a lot of fun, more fun than I thought it was going to be.”
Lock, stock — which propelled Ritchie straight to Hollywood — came out in 1998, and despite the nearly quarter-century that has passed, he admitted he hadn’t really had a chance to sit back and reflect on his life and career since then. “You blink your eyes and it’s like nothing happened,” he said. “You’re just two stone heavier and a little bit richer.”