Michelle Dockery replaces Beckinsale in ‘Toff Guys’

MICHELLE Dockery has replaced Kate Beckinsale in Guy Ritchie’s ‘ Toff Guys’.

The ‘ Downton Abbey’ star - who recently finished shooting the spin- off movie of the popular British period drama, in which she starred as Lady Mary Crawley - will now portray Matthew McConaughey’s alter ego’s wife instead of the ‘ Total Recall’ actress in the gangster flick.

Irish star Colin Farrell has also joined the cast as an MMA fighter trainer.

The latest additions to the lineup come after it was revealed Hugh Grant is set to play gossip journalist Fletcher and Henry Golding, a Vietnamese gangster.

The motion picture is expected to see writer Ritchie inspired by his classic crime comedy efforts, ‘Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels’ and ‘Snatch’. .

Miramax forked out US$ 30 million on the rights for the movie in May, ahead of the Cannes market, and production is expected to begin shortly in England.

The movie will centre on the story of a British drug lord who is attempting to sell off his business to a dynasty of Oklahoma billionaires.

Ritchie, Marn Davies and Ivan Atkinson have penned the script for the project.

The ‘ King Arthur: Legend of the Sword’ director previously admitted he feels cinema needs to give people “more” than it used to, because the quality of TV shows has increased.

He said: “To a degree cinema has become a sensational format, so you have to respect the rules of contemporary cinema. Because why do you go the cinema now, when TV can give you so much?

“You do need more from cinema than you used to. It needs to be an event of sorts just because television has become so interesting. There seems to be a polarisation between what cinema needs to do now and what TV needs to do.”