Charlie Cox to star in world premiere of THE KING'S RANSOM

Shehrazade Zafar-Arif 2 October, 2026, 14:02

This new play by Stuart Slade will have its world premiere at the Donmar Warehouse in December.

Charlie Cox. Photo by Brian Bowen-Smith.

Described as "a Southern-fried dark comedy about grief, redemption and spectacularly bad decisions", The King's Ransom is set in Memphis in 1977. Small-time crook Vince Black is offered the opportunity of a lifetime by an enigmatic criminal mastermind. Vince assembles a crack team of misfits to attempt the heist of the century: stealing the corpse of Elvis Presley for a million-dollar ransom.

Directed by Matthew Dunster, it will star Charlie Cox, best known for playing Matt Murdock / Daredevil in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as Vince Black. He is joined by Tom Fletcher (Charlie), Matthew Flynn (Mr Bluefield), Blake Harrison (Rusty), Leo Patrick (Jessie Lee), Jenny Rainsford (Rhonda / Jenny), Christopher Short (Elvis), Cherrelle Skeete (Mike), and Ronnie Yorke (Red), with the role of Martha played by Ruby Barker, Eira Kay and Trixie Willis.

The creative team includes set designer Anna Fleischle, costume designer Jean Chan, lighting designer Sally Ferguson, sound designer Holly Khan, illusion designer Chris Cox, fight and intimacy directors Ruth Cooper-Brown and Rachel Bown-Williams of Rc-Annie, and casting director Lotte Hines.

The King's Ransom will play at the Donmar Warehouse from 5 December 2026 to 6 February 2027, with a press night on 16 December.