It reminds me of the other day - a friend runs up to me, knowing I’m a Bond fan, and says “did you hear so-and-so is going to be the next James Bond!?”
I patted the lad on the head and told him how he should ignore that stuff and how us vets are used to the rumor mill flying in high gear during this phase in the production process 
haha - good try - Newman is definitely a Mendes thing, he won’t be sticking around. Get Johann Johansson now he’s been studio interference/disrespected out of Blade Runner
I think Arnold is most likely, given he’s the closest thing EON has to an in house composer.
I’d like Arnold back as well. Newman’s work overall is good and I enjoyed SF, but SP seemed derivative of what was done before and it is not some kind of sin to incorporate more of the Bond theme. Also, I believe Eon has final say but, as a matter of collaboration, they are always open.
So they’re already ‘spotting’ composers on production lists now, phew…
However early days wishful thinking produced this, I’m not terribly hot on a return of Newman. When half the score of SPECTRE sounds suspiciously like SKYFALL’s it’s perhaps better not to pull the same trick twice. Otherwise, I don’t have any strong preferences regarding the composer. But I grant that I’d be a very happy man if the Stones did the title song.
Not that this is would be decided for another 18 or 20 months even…
Me too!
Despite their age they can still make the best rock-pop out there. ‘Doom and Gloom’ is in my Stones top 10 and is by far my favourite track this decade (along with everything by Fever Ray 
) .
Agreed. If Mendes is out, and he surely is, Newman won’t be doing the score.
I’m a fan of the Newman soundtracks, though. David Arnold’s best work is found on CR and QoS, but I still think Newman was a better fit for Craig’s Bond. His scores are my favourites after John Barry. They had a lush, introspective sound that was very much in the Barry mould, even though the execution was different…as it should be. I actually liked how Newman kept musical continuity between his films, like Hans Zimmer’s work on TDK Trilogy. They both kept the same sound but introduced a bunch of new motifs along the way.
But that’s a moot point now. I think it’s likely David Arnold returns.
I’d like to see David Arnold come back to send off Craig. The producers like him, and unless the new director wants his own guy, I think Arnold returns. He’d be good at incorporating the title theme into the score, if the producers would let him (Sheryl Crow, Madonna, Jack Black & Alicia Keyes notwithstanding.) See kd Lang, garbage, and Shirley Bassey’s “No Good About Goodbye” to hear what I mean.
Does anybody remember Arnold´s twittering of the CraigBond-ID this spring?
I would be very surprised if that had not been a sign for Arnold being promised to be called back for BOND 25 again.
I liked Newman´s scores for both SKYFALL and SPECTRE - but it was clear that SPECTRE suffered from the chaotic and hastened process of postproduction, with Mendes using the SKYFALL score as a temp track, thereby rendering Newman´s ideas for the new score rather incoherent.
That is a big fat NO from me. Bring back David Arnold, or better yet, someone who knows how to interpret the Bond theme on his own - rather than cut and paste from previous scores .
I think the idea that Newman rarely used the Bond theme is a myth. He actually used it quite a bit…and most of the uses are his variations, save for the end credits. I’d say his main version of the theme would be what we hear in Grand Bazaar Istanbul, Backfire, Enquiry and She’s Mine.
I enjoy these other tracks, too:
New Digs
Day Wasted
Los Muertos Vivos Estan
Vauxhall Bridge
L’Americain
Westminster Bridge
Arnold didn’t use the theme heavily in CR or QoS, so if Newman is to be grilled on that basis, so should Arnold. But if anything, I’d say Newman used the theme more than Arnold ever did in the Craig era. SPECTRE, with the same director, composer and returning cast members has the true ingredients of a sequel. I think that was reflected in the music - playing ‘Mother’ during M’s video for example. That’s her theme, so what’s the problem playing it? Same thing with Moneypenny’s ‘Close Shave’ motif.
When it comes to new content versus re-used content, there’s more new content. I think ‘Madeleine’ is one of the best tracks from any Bond composer. ‘Silver Wraith’ is mysterious and memorable. People either love or hate ‘Writing’s on the Wall’, but I think it worked great as an instrumental. And ‘Donna Lucia’ is something I return to on a regular basis. I find it pure Bond. Elegant and haunting.
Well put and true.
I think the biggest knock on Newman was the amount of reused material, but I blame that more on the director than composer. Other than that I think he did a fine job, one I was pleasantly surprised with.
Newman is absolutely a top composer, there’s no doubt about that. The problem with his SPECTRE score was that somewhere along the way it was decided that it should be SKYFALL II - which it wasn’t. If Newman was to return - unlikely - then I would hope it wasn’t for SKYFALL III.
Newman can produce a brilliant atmosphere, intriguing yet not domineering over the images on screen, something which composers often fail to achieve. But he also needs the necessary time and space to work his magic; all apparently not on offer when SPECTRE saw its score worked onto the footage.
Newman is immensely talented but I was extremely underwhelmed with the SPECTRE score. I’m all for keeping continuity with character themes but I swear some of the action cues were just lifted directly from Skyfall. Like someone else said, some of that could have been on Mendes but nevertheless it made the score less enjoyable. David Arnold is my favorite Bond composer after John Barry so I’d very much welcome his return to send off Craig.
I genuinely like much of Arnold’s work and agree with @sharpshooter that CR and QoS are his best scores. I was honestly never a big fan of his Brosnan film scores as they suffer the most from his wall-to-wall nonstop music approach to scoring. That said, the man can do a Barry pastiche like no one else, and sometimes that’s enough.
He’s been right before…
It’s not up to Craig though. I was under the impression that Villeneuve’s schedule was going to prevent him from directing Bond 25.
It’s not technically up to Craig but I think he has a pretty loud voice in the conversation. He also just worked with Roger Deakins and Dennis Gassner who I’m sure also recommended him to EON.
I say go for it!
I´d be keen for that, too.
And if Craig wants Villeneuve, it will be Villeneuve. Unless scheduling or money will prevent it.
It could then also be a nice reunion with Roger Deakins, too.