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Statesman in General
Statesman is a secret independent intelligence agency based in the USA, and basically the American counterpart of the UK's Kingsman. As a cover-up, the Statesman headquarters poses as a Bourbon whiskey distillery in Louisville, Kentucky. The distillery is also the agency's main source of income and funding as Champagne often checks the brand's stock value.
- Americans Are Cowboys: They're the American counterparts of Kingsman and all of them, bar Ginger Ale, dress like cowboys and use tools that would feel more appropriate for a rodeo at first glance.
- Bizarrchitecture: The Statesman headquarters is a whiskey bottle-shaped building.
- Brains and Brawn: Have this relationship with the Kingsmen in a subdued form, where both are good at their jobs but the Kingsmen are better spies while the Statesmen are better fighters, as evidenced by Tequila taking out Eggsy and Merlin rather easily and Whiskey fighting Harry and Eggsy and nearly killing both.
- Ginger Ale averts this by taking up the Whiskey title after his demise.
- Covert Group with Mundane Front: The Statesman brand of liquor is their mundane front, much like the Kingsman tailor shop is one for their British counterparts. Beyond the obvious difference in products, that front is revealed to be a multi-billion dollar company, as one would expect of capitalism — Kingsman sells a few thousand $5000+ suits a year, Statesman sells millions of $100+ bottles of liquor in the same timeframe.
- Edible Theme Naming: Much like Kingsman, only they use alcoholic beverages instead of Arthurian knights. The head of each organization gets the most "prestigious" codename - Arthur and Champagne - while their Mission Control figures are named after things that aren't strictly part of the group but enhance the others; Merlin not being a knight and is instead a magic-capable advisor to King Arthur, while Ginger Ale is non-alcoholic but can be mixed with alcohol to create cocktails.
- Foil: To the Kingsmen, of course. While the aesthetics and general etiquette of the Kingsmen evoke the Quintessential British Gentleman, the Statesmen represent the Southern Gentleman. While the Kingsmen are Weak, but Skilled (their gadgets emphasizing stealth and espionage), the Statesmen are Unskilled, but Strong (their guns and lassos made to kill, their more subtle gadgets like their condom-tracker much cruder). While Kingsmen are trained to be cold and efficient (their Training from Hell inoculating them to making difficult choices for the greater good and Merlin routinely having to reign in Eggsy for his outbursts), Statesmen agents are more prone to acting with their emotions (Tequila being a routine drug-user who puts Eggsy and Merlin through a Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique, Whiskey a Casanova Wannabe and Moonshine an impulsive bigot). Both are freelance agencies with a public front, but while the Kingsmen's front is strictly high class (tailor shop), the Statesmen have a cheaper, but more publicly accessible (and lucrative) business in brewing whiskey.
- Southern Gentleman: Just like the Kingsmen evoke the proper English gentleman, the Statesmen evoke the Southern gentleman.
- Lampshaded when Tequila says Southerners got their charm from the British who apparently forgot to keep some for themselves.
Champagne
Champagne / "Champ"
A grumpy boss.
Portrayed By: Jeff Bridges
Dubbed By: Patrick Béthune (European French)
Appearances: Kingsman: The Golden Circle
"All Statesman resources are yours."
The head of Statesman.
- Big Good: He's the head of the Statesman and the American equivalent of Arthur, and the best help the few remaining Kingsman agents can possibly find against the Golden Circle. Unlike Chester King, he never betrays the good guys and is firmly on their side.
- Cool Old Guy: You didn't honestly expect anything else from Jeff Bridges in a movie like this, didn't you?
- Establishing Character Moment: He greets the Kingsmen with his back turned, then turns around, takes off his hat, throws it across the room right onto a nebuchadnezzarnote of champagne, apologizes sincerely for all misunderstandings that had happened up to this point, and offers them any support he can give, all the while he's sampling whiskey.
- A Father to His Men: He's deeply concerned about Tequila's wellbeing when the latter is laid low by Poppy's tainted drugs, and immediately dispatches everyone to track down the cure regardless of what the POTUS or anyone else thinks about it. His other interactions with the rest of his team show that his devotion to them is just as strong.
- No Name Given: Only his codename is known.
- Quick Nip: He's constantly taking a sniff or a swish of bourbon while discussing important strategies with the Statesmen and Kingsmen. He doesn't actually swallow anything, however, and keeps a spittoon by his chair.
- Recovered Addict: According to
Word of God, Champagne suffered from crippling alcoholism in the past and has since overcome it and has since learned to curb his vices by subverting them. Whenever he drinks alcohol, he spits it into a spittoon instead of swallowing it. While he's seen with cigars, he is never actually seen smoking them. It's implied his sympathy as a former addict along with general decency is what spurs on his heavy support to save all the disaffected drug users from Poppy and the President's evil plans. - Southern Gentleman: Very much so, what with all the Kentucky cowboy shtick.
Whiskey
Jack Daniels / Agent Whiskey
A whip-wielding agent.
Portrayed By: Pedro Pascal
Appearances: Kingsman: The Golden Circle
The highest-ranking Statesman agent below Champagne.
- All There in the Manual: His last name is never mentioned, but he's credited as "Whiskey/Jack Daniels."
- Aloof Ally: "Jack" has something of an Irrational Hatred for Ginger, who apparently considers him a friend. He also is condescending towards Eggsy and Harry. He's been Evil All Along.
- Big Bad Ensemble: With Poppy in the second film. Although she instigated the crisis, Whiskey intends to let her hostages die in order to get rid of the "meth heads" who killed his wife, and works to sabotage Harry and Eggsy's mission before confronting them as the Final Boss in the climax.
- Boom, Headshot!: Harry shoots him in the head, suspecting him of being a Double Agent. He survives thanks to Eggsy applying the Statesman nanomachines. It comes back to bite Eggsy in the ass hard.
- Casanova Wannabe: He confidently tells Eggsy to "watch and learn" from him before trying to seduce a target. He's blown off immediately and is an amusingly poor flirt; additionally, Ginger remarks that "it's nice to have an agent who knows what he's doing", mentioning Whiskey for contrast, as she and Merlin listen to Eggsy in bed with Clara. It's possible this is Whiskey losing his touch over the years, with his pregnant spouse's untimely death as a factor.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: After betraying Eggsy and Harry and getting into a brief fight against the two, Whiskey gets shoved headfirst into Poppy's meat grinder and reduced to ground meat.
- Crusading Widower: An outright villainous, if still-sympathetic, one who seeks to rid the world of drug-users, uncaring for any positives involved, that he blames for the death of his pregnant wife.
- Curb Stomp Cushion: He's able to keep up with Harry and Eggsy but only just, as most of the fight has them just smacking him all over with him getting a few lucky hits in.
- Dark and Troubled Past: His wife, who was pregnant with their son, was a casualty when two drug users robbed a convenience store and she got caught in the crossfire.
- Everyone Has Standards: He's willing to let tons of people die to stomp out drug users, but he admitted it after calling the President an asshole while his own motives are a little more sympathetic.
- Evil Counterpart: A lot of comparisons are demonstrated between him and Harry. Both are top agents in their respective agencies, both mentor Eggsy (with varying results), both have motivations that are driven by tragedy, and both even have a bar fight scene to establish their badass credentials. Too bad that while Harry is heroic enough to not actually wish death upon a church full of bigots, Whiskey is willing to let innocent people die along with the actual criminals.
- Final Boss: He's the last hurdle Eggsy and Harry have to overcome to save the day, and he puts up one hell of a fight.
- Fish out of Water: He appears to be one of the older people at the Glastonbury Festival, especially since he's there with Eggsy, which doesn't really help him to seduce a female target. That he seems to be completely unfamiliar with the youth's fixation on social media is only the last nail in his figurative coffin.
- Foe Romance Subtext: One-sided example with Ginger. It turns out he has an irrational dislike towards Ginger due to reasons not fully explored. He's vocally unsupportive whenever she makes attempts to get herself assigned to fieldwork and places disproportionate blame on her for certain things going wrong. However, when he wakes up with his memories as an adult erased after Harry guns him down, he's clearly attracted to Ginger; he shoots upright, calls her gorgeous, and starts hitting on her with hilarious aggression. Ginger quickly snaps him out of it.
- Foil:
- To Eggsy. Both Eggsy and him have to live through a very traumatic experience, Eggsy losing all his colleagues at Kingsman (not to mention his dog), and Whiskey losing his pregnant wife. Though while Eggsy did lash out multiple times about his misfortunes, he doesn't let his emotions compromise the mission. Whiskey, on the other hand, does a very great job of hiding his true feelings, but deep down he harbors a deep hatred and desire for vengeance against drug users for causing the death of his wife and unborn son, and he lets his emotions cloud his judgments, making him willing to condemn every drug user good and bad to death.
- To Harry as well. Both are seasoned agents of their respective organizations, been faced with a traumatic/tragic experience that linger in their minds, and help mentor Eggsy. However, while Harry is an complete gentleman who treats Eggsy with nothing short of respect and patience, Whiskey is often condescending towards Eggsy despite the implication that he sees him as a surrogate for his unborn son. Especially of note is that while Harry is absolutely horrified that he killed an entire church of bigots, Whiskey has no qualms about letting the majority of the world's drug users die, regardless of context behind their usage.
- Freudian Excuse: His pregnant wife was killed in the midst of a gunfight between two meth addicts, leading to his deep-seated, immense hatred for drugs and the people who use them no matter what the reason.
- Greed: One of his primary motivations, since the deaths of Poppy's victims will drive up share prices for Statesman.
- Gun Kata: He's just as adept as you would expect at mixing martial arts with gunplay.
- Heartbroken Badass: He's a major badass guided by the desire for vengeance over his wife and son's deaths.
- He Who Fights Monsters: In his crusade against drugs and druggies, he's willing to let drug users who do so for positive reasons die alongside the negatives.
- High-School Sweethearts: According to him, he and his late wife were this.
- Hypocrite: He demonizes all drug users because his pregnant wife died in the crossfire of a shootout between two meth addicts, yet seemingly doesn't care that liquor's also dangerous, addictive, and responsible for countless deaths paralleling his wife's. The plan to let millions of innocent drug-using victims, that includes children, perish along with the guilty ones, in his mind, would have the bonus effect of skyrocketing Statesman liquor sales.
- Knight Templar: He shares the President's view that any and all drug users should die, regardless of why they use.
- Irrational Hatred: To him, every problem that arises is somehow always Ginger's fault!
- Ladykiller in Love: He's ecstatic about the idea of seducing an informant with the implications from Ginger Ale that he has done so before. But, his only true love was his beloved wife, who was accidentally killed.
- Lone Wolf Boss: Despite being the final antagonist of the movie, he is not directly involved with Poppy's cartel and is only taking advantage of the situation for his own ends.
- The Lost Lenore: Avenging his wife's death at the hands of two meth addicts is his biggest motivator for betraying the Statesmen and allowing for the deaths of millions. He also hasn't moved forward from her death.
- Memento MacGuffin: A Polaroid image of his deceased wife during their happy times is what Ginger uses to bring back his memories after the restoration procedure following Harry shooting him in the head.
- The Mole: Harry suspects him of being this and shoots him in the head as a result, but Eggsy saves him using the Statesman nanomachine film. In the end, it is revealed that Harry was Right for the Wrong Reasons - Whiskey was a threat alright, but instead was a Rogue Agent rather than a Mole.
- One-Man Army: He's easily the most dangerous fighter in the entire film. In the climax, he's nearly the match of Eggsy AND Harry together.
- Only in It for the Money: His Freudian Excuse mentioned above is a prominent reason why he wants all drug users to die. A close second is the fact that, according to him, his Statesman shares will skyrocket after the worldwide culling of drug users.
- Outliving One's Offspring: His wife was pregnant with their son when she was murdered accidentally by two meth addicts in a convenience store shootout.
- Parental Substitute: Of sorts, to Eggsy. He refers to the latter as "kid" and tries to act as his mentor until Harry comes back into the picture, and Whiskey reveals shortly before his death that his unborn son would've been Eggsy's age if he had lived.
- Punny Name: His real name is Jack Daniels. Looks like he didn't even need a codename in the first place. Or it's the chief reason Champ gave him/he took on the codename Whiskey. It was just too good of an opportunity to pass up.
- Revolvers Are Just Better: He dual-wields a pair of Colt Single Action Army revolvers.
- Rogue Agent: While he might not be a part of Poppy's syndicate, his intense personal hatred for drug users means he's willing to allow for her plan to kill drug users on Earth (something the POTUS also agrees) and thus tries covertly and eventually directly to sabotage the Kingsman/Statesman's joint effort to distribute the cure.
- Rule of Cool: A sharp-dressed Southern Gentleman with a Hat of Authority who dual-wields double-barreled revolvers, supplemented by a lasso and a powered bullwhip that can cut through anything like a friggin' lightsaber, all of it wielded with impossible skill and efficiency. And he has a personal F-22 fighter jet! Honestly, Whiskey runs on little else but Rule of Cool.
- Skewed Priorities: After recovering from his head wound, Whiskey, or "Jack", doesn't question where he is or anything. He's too busy flirting with Ginger.
- Socially Awkward Hero: When he tries and fails to flirt with a target, it shows that Whiskey isn't really in his element when he tries to integrate himself with a younger, millennial generation. Another factor of this is his dead wife, as he never moved on from mourning her.
- Straight Edge Evil: He tries to stop the Kingsman from delivering the antidote to Poppy's drugs, believing that drug-users all deserve to die since it was two meth addicts that caused the death of his pregnant wife.
- Walking Spoiler: As you can probably notice, half the tropes here are about how cool and badass he is, the other half is about his hidden agenda and sympathetic motivation.
- Weapon Specialization: His main weapon is an extendable lasso which also can be energized and cut everything in its path including people, but he also has a whip on the side.
- Weapon Twirling: He spins his revolvers around his trigger fingers while fighting off a swarm of mooks.
Tequila
Agent Tequila
A token American.
Click here to see him as
a Kingsman agentPortrayed By: Channing Tatum
Appearances: Kingsman: The Golden Circle
"That'll make you wanna slap your mama right there."
A Statesman agent Champagne considers as one of the best.
- The Ace: Introduced by curb-stomping Eggsy and Merlin in a very short battle, and Champagne mentions that he's one of his best agents.
- Advertised Extra: Despite large presence in promotional materials, he's quickly sidelined by Poppy's virus and put on ice while Agent Whiskey takes point.
- Berserk Button: Doing anything to waste the Statesmen's decades old liquor will make it personal.
- Drama-Preserving Handicap: After wiping the floor to both Eggsy and Merlin, Tequila ends up in cryostasis for most of The Golden Circle after it has been revealed he'd been poisoned by Poppy's drugs, unknowingly.
- Establishing Character Moment: He is a walking, talking, living version of this trope for Statesman as a whole.
- Just Following Orders: Tequila's first impression with Eggsy and Merlin doesn't go very well. He attacks them, interrogates them, threatens to light their genitals on fire, and hold an unwitting and amnesiac Harry at gunpoint. Once Ginger interrupts and clears things up, Tequila immediately apologizes and declares that he was "just doing his job".
- Mr. Fanservice: Hardly a surprise, given who's playing him. He also gets a Shirtless Scene to show off his chiseled physique.
- Mr. Vice Guy: Ginger calls him Statesman's "resident bad boy", confirmed to use recreational drugs. He's a member of the good guys.
- Must Have Nicotine: He keeps a wad of dipping tobacco in his mouth that he can spit out to form a strong enough adhesive to seal up a hole in a whisky barrel.
- Nice Guy: Clearly, one of the more moralistic characters in the film series.
- One-Handed Shotgun Pump: He does this with his lever-action rifle, flip-cocking it like John Wayne famously did in Stagecoach.
- Sharp-Dressed Man: Inverted for most of his appearances (his boss even calls him out for his disregard of the Statesman dresscode), but played straight in the epilogue where he's become a Kingsman agent and is seen in London, decked out in a crisp black suit including a bowler hat.
- Tainted Veins: When he's revealed to have been poisoned by Poppy's drugs, his body starts sporting this.
Ginger Ale
Ginger Ale Later the new Agent Whiskey
A gadget woman.
Portrayed By: Halle Berry
Appearances: Kingsman: The Golden Circle
"Let's get started."
The tech expert of Statesman.
- Distaff Counterpart: She's the Statesman organization's equivalent of Merlin.
- Mission Control: Serves as this for the Statesmen, and works with Merlin in this role for the events of the film.
- Nerds Are Sexy: She's an office-bound tech genius with Nerd Glasses, and post-headshot amnesiac Whiskey finds her attractive.
- Non-Action Girl: Though a trained Statesmen agent, she's primarily stuck in tech support. It's mentioned that she's applied to become a field agent before, but Whiskey votes against her. At the end of the film she claims Whiskey's vacant spot.
- Not So Similar: Downplayed with Merlin. They are indeed Birds of a Feather in a number of ways, but do have some considerable differences; such as Ginger wanting to become a field agent, while Merlin likes being non-action Mission Control (or at least claims so).
- Odd Name Out: She's the only member of the Statesmen not to be named after an alcoholic drink. Hers refers to a mixer, that is used to make the alcohol better.
- Sheep in Sheep's Clothing: She's a very pleasant, kindhearted lady. However, Harry at one point has suspicions that all of the Statesman organization may be working with a Big Bad. It's proven false. Ginger is genuinely the affable, benevolent person she seems to be.
- The Smurfette Principle: She's the only female Statesman with any noteworthy amount of screentime. The epilogue does show an Asian woman among the Statesmen's field agents, but she doesn't say a single word, and her appearance is a textbook case of a Freeze-Frame Bonus.
- Twofer Token Minority: She's a black woman in an organization mostly made up of white men.
