Matthew Allard de Vere Drummond (born Matthew Allard Robert Vaughn; 7 March 1971), known professionally as Matthew Vaughn, is an English filmmaker. He has produced films including Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) and Snatch (2000), and directed Layer Cake (2004), Stardust (2007), Kick-Ass (2010), X-Men: First Class (2011), and Argylle (2024). Vaughn also co-created the Kingsman comic book series and resulting franchise, directing, producing and co-writing the films Kingsman: The Secret
My biggest influence for First Class was going back to the first three James Bonds – Dr. No, From Russia With Love and Goldfinger. I wanted to apply that spy thriller aesthetic to the mutant world, grounding it in a plausible historical context.