‘Knew Vijay Deverakonda’s Kingdom won’t work even before release, won’t be making a sequel’: producer Naga Vamsi

Vijay Deverakonda's Kingdom released in theatres on July 31. (Screenshot: YouTube/SitharaEntertainments)

When Arjun Reddy released in 2017, it proved to be a major turning point in Vijay Deverakonda’s career. The film catapulted him to stardom, and subsequent successes like Mahanati, Geetha Govindam and Dear Comrade further strengthened his position. Vijay soon became a bankable star in Telugu cinema, signing several projects, including big-budget ventures such as Liger and Kingdom.

However, neither film worked at the box office. In fact, Kingdom turned out to be one of the “biggest mistakes” of 2025 for producer Naga Vamsi, with the makers now officially confirming that there will be no Kingdom 2. After the failures of World Famous Lover, Liger, Kushi and The Family Star, Kingdom was expected to be Vijay Deverakonda’s Dhurandhar moment. Unfortunately, unlike Ranveer Singh’s recent box-office revival, Vijay’s magic failed to translate this time. Kingdom ended up as a major disaster, reportedly causing losses of over Rs 70 crore to the makers.

In a recent interview with Idlebrainlive, producer Naga Vamsi spoke candidly about the film while discussing his upcoming project Lenin. He said, “I don’t want to hype up my films or say too many good things because that approach backfired badly for me in 2025.” He was referring to Kingdom and War 2, as both these films caused him major losses.

Naga Vamsi revealed that he had sensed trouble even before Kingdom hit theatres. “About a week before the release, I knew the film wouldn’t work. It wasn’t about whether it would be a hit or a flop — I knew there was a problem in the second half. It was supposed to be emotionally strong, but that didn’t happen,” he explained. He added that while director Gowtam Tinnanuri’s strength lies in emotional storytelling, “somewhere in this film, that core emotion was missed.”

He further admitted, “We knew Kingdom wasn’t a bad film, but I still had doubts.” Explaining why the film was aggressively promoted despite those concerns, he said, “Our idea was to recover around 70 per cent of the budget on the opening day itself. Once a film releases, there’s nothing you can change. So our entire focus was on ensuring a massive opening.”

Taking full responsibility for the film’s failure, Naga Vamsi said, “I am not blaming anyone. If the film failed at the box office, it is completely on me. The film isn’t bad, but we misfired somewhere. Whether it was miscasting or something else, I still can’t pinpoint it. Some said, it was the music. But, I still can’t figure it out.” He also confirmed that a sequel is off the table. “We won’t be making Kingdom 2. There’s no point talking about it now. It will only hurt Gowtam. However, we are collaborating again on a different project.”

Kingdom poster. (Photo: IMDb)

Earlier, speaking to Great Andhra, Naga Vamsi had shed light on creative disagreements during the making of the film. “We identified issues in the second half, and on that point, my uncle and Gowtam argued for nearly three months. That was one of the reasons for the delay. While we felt the film should resonate with the audience, Gowtam wanted to break stereotypes. He was adamant. Since he had already made a film like Jersey, we couldn’t push him further. In hindsight, if we had involved Trivikram at that stage, the film might have been fixed and worked.”

Naga Vamsi has collaborated with Trivikram on several projects and treats him like his mentor. Trivikram is the man behind films like Guntur Kaaram, and Ala Vaikunthapurramulu. Vijay Deverakonda has been waiting for a solid success since Dear Comrade in 2019, which also starred his then-rumoured girlfriend and now fiance Rashmika Mandanna. He is reportedly part of Kalki 2898 AD, though details about his character remain under wraps.

Made on a budget of Rs 130 crore, Kingdom opened at Rs 18 crore and went on to collect a lifetime worldwide total of Rs 82 crore. Reflecting on the loss, Naga Vamsi recalled his uncle Radha Krishna questioning the decision: “When we know our strengths and are happy making moderately budgeted films, why did we attempt a big-budget project?” Going forward, Naga Vamsi has promised to focus on films that align with their sensibilities — projects like DJ Tillu— prioritising strong entertainment value and stories that stay true to their core.