Guy Ritchie is officially out of the Road House sequel.
The Snatch and Sherlock Holmes director was set to helm Road House 2, the follow-up to Jake Gyllenhaal’s wildly successful 2024 remake, which racked up over 80 million views in just eight weeks on Prime Video. But according to Deadline, Ritchie has now stepped away from the project — and the reason remains a mystery.
Despite his exit, Amazon MGM Studios is still pushing ahead. Filming is reportedly set to begin this autumn, and a hunt is already underway for a new director to keep the momentum going. The studio still considers the project a top priority.
Jake Gyllenhaal is confirmed to return as Dalton, the brawler-turned-bar hero and former UFC fighter, in a script penned by Bad Boys: Ride or Die writer Will Beall.
Last year’s Road House reboot, directed by Doug Liman, reimagined the 1989 cult classic and became one of Prime Video’s biggest hits. However, it wasn’t without behind-the-scenes drama.
Doug Liman initially boycotted the premiere at SXSW in protest of Amazon’s decision to skip a theatrical release. In a fiery essay for Deadline, he accused the tech giant of sidelining cinemas and robbing both filmmakers and actors — including Gyllenhaal — of the opportunity for box office recognition and potential awards.
“When Road House opens the SXSW Film Festival, I won’t be attending,” Liman wrote at the time. “My plan had been to silently protest Amazon’s decision to stream a movie so clearly made for the big screen… Amazon is hurting way more than just me and my film.”
He went on to say Amazon’s model “deprives Jake Gyllenhaal — who gives a career-best performance — the opportunity to be recognised come award season,” and warned that the ripple effects of streaming-first strategies could be “industry shaping for decades.”
With Ritchie stepping aside, all eyes are now on who will steer the sequel — and whether Amazon will consider rethinking its cinema-shunning strategy in the face of growing industry pushback.
