Everything we know so far about the new, live-action ‘King Arthur’ movie

While you might think you’ve heard/seen the King Arthur legend before, think again. There’s a new movie coming out with Sons of Anarchy star Charlie Hunnam in the titular role as the king of ages past, and it already looks like a WHOLE new take on the knights of the roundtable.

Entertainment Weekly got the exclusive and they’re sharing the awesome photos with the rest of the world — as well as a sneak peek of what to expect when Knights of the Roundtable: King Arthur hits theaters on May 22, 2016. Here are just a few things you need to know about the film right off the bat.

Forget everything you know about King Arthur. According to Hunnam and director Guy Ritchie, this version of Arthur (growing up as an orphan in a 5th century version of London) is going to be a little more street-savvy and a lot more willing to get down and dirty. Definitely not a far departure for Hunnam, who played the rising heir in a bloodthirsty motorcycle club on Sons of Anarchy.  Still, it might be a change that some audiences aren’t expecting.

In the words of Ritchie: “I think where the pitfall has often been is trying to make King Arthur bland and nice, and nice and bland. The two qualities make rather compatible bed companions. Unfortunately, they’re not interesting to watch. Luke Skywalker was always the most uninteresting character in Star Wars because he’s the good guy. Good guys are boring.” Agreed. Give us complex, multi-faceted characters any day of the week.

This isn’t director Guy Ritchie’s first adaptation of a classic story. Prior to this, he adapted the classic series Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle into two films for the silver screen, with Robert Downey Jr. starring as the infamous sleuth and Jude Law as Watson. King Arthur definitely feels like it’s going to be similarly updated for today’s audience while perhaps providing a few surprises along the way.

King Arthur is definitely going to have its fair share of monsters. Per Entertainment Weekly, this street-smart Arthur will not be lacking when it comes to supernatural creatures he’ll have to face. Among them will be, “giant snakes, massive war elephants, and a monstrous viking-like creature known as The Nemesis,” which sounds foreboding in and of itself.

There’s a great cast attached to this film so far. Apart from Hunnam, we know that the film will also co-star Eric Bana as Uther, Arthur’s father, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey as Guinevere, Djimon Hounsou as Sir Bedivere and surprisingly, David Beckham as the mysteriously titled “Blackleg leader.” We have no idea what that role will entail, but we’re pretty psyched that Becks is appearing in this film too.

The is the first film of many! Apparently, this will be the first installment of a planned six(!) movies. Can we buy our tickets in advance, please?

At the end of the day, any excuse to look at pictures of Charlie Hunnam is a good one — but it’s not every day that these pictures also feature the famous sword Excalibur! Check out more photos at Entertainment Weekly.

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[Featured image via Twitter]