Guy Ritchie is returning to familiar territory. One of power struggles, dangerous families, and moral decay with Wife and Dog, a new thriller headlined by Benedict Cumberbatch. The film has now secured a theatrical release date of October 23rd, and early story details suggest a sharp, ruthless drama anchored in greed, legacy, and lethal ambition.
Written and directed by Ritchie, Wife and Dog centers on a vicious succession battle within the wealthy Fairbank family and their inner circle. As alliances fracture and desperation mounts, betrayal escalates into murder, turning inheritance into a deadly game. The premise positions the film squarely at the intersection of prestige drama and crime thriller territory Ritchie knows well.
The cast is as formidable as the story’s stakes. Alongside Cumberbatch, the ensemble includes Rosamund Pike, Anthony Hopkins, Cosmo Jarvis, Paddy Considine, and James Norton. With such a lineup, Wife and Dog is shaping up to be a performance-driven film, where power dynamics and psychological warfare are just as lethal as any physical confrontation.
The project will be distributed by Black Bear Pictures, which continues to build momentum following the launch of its U.S. theatrical distribution arm in July 2025. In addition to Wife and Dog, Black Bear has announced a May 22nd theatrical release for Tuner, starring Dustin Hoffman, and an August 22nd debut for Matthew McConaughey’s The Rivals of Amziah King. The company plans to release up to 12 films theatrically each year, signaling a serious commitment to prestige cinema in a shifting theatrical landscape.
The timing of Wife and Dog’s announcement is notable, arriving the same day Ritchie confirmed that MobLand season two will premiere in 2026. Ritchie serves as director and executive producer on the crime series, which also stars Paddy Considine and similarly explores the brutal mechanics of rival families and power. The thematic overlap is hard to ignore as Wife and Dog feels like a cinematic cousin to MobLand, and even evokes comparisons to Succession if its characters were willing to kill for Logan Roy’s empire.
Ritchie’s 2026 slate doesn’t stop there. Prime Video’s Young Sherlock premieres March 4th, with Ritchie directing multiple episodes of the series. The show stars Hero Fiennes Tiffin as the titular detective, alongside Dónal Finn, Zine Tseng, Colin Firth, Joseph Fiennes, and Max Irons. The project adds an extra layer of intrigue to Wife and Dog, as it marks the first collaboration between Ritchie and Cumberbatch—despite both being closely tied to the Sherlock Holmes legacy. Cumberbatch famously portrayed the detective in the BBC’s Sherlock, while Ritchie previously directed Sherlock Holmes and Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, starring Robert Downey Jr.
There’s also a quiet Marvel reunion embedded within the cast. Cumberbatch and Anthony Hopkins—who played Doctor Strange and Odin, respectively—both appeared in Thor: Ragnarok, though their characters never shared a scene. Wife and Dog now places them on the same narrative battlefield, trading cosmic stakes for something far more intimate and brutal.
With its lethal family dynamics, elite cast, and Ritchie’s signature edge, Wife and Dog is positioning itself as one of the most compelling adult thrillers on the 2026 release calendar. When power is the prize, survival is never guaranteed and in this family, blood may be the least valuable currency of all.
