Back to this. It’s true that Bond still has a mystique about it. Even though we fear that the delay will make people forget or not care about the franchise, as a cultural institution I don’t see the media frenzy changing much. There’s just too much accumulated history between the books and the films, and that all gets activated again whenever a new movie appears.
Even when fans from any point during the last 50 years didn’t like the most recent film and complained the series lost its way, the love never really disappeared. There was always the hope the next movie would be more to their liking, and the certainty there would be one.
This would be a fantastic approach for the next one. I think reintroducing the world to James Bond on a mission where he’s largely solo and having to survive on his own wits rather than via instruction over an earpiece is the best way to really show off the Bond character for a new audience. It would help to retain some of that mythology of the character moving forward that I think is at least somewhat diminished by making him part of a larger team that is constantly by his side.
That would be good. Whilst I do remember him saying he was one and done in terms of Bond, would he actually turn down creating the visual style for a whole era with a director who is very into the visual image?
Villeneuve has stated how much of a fan he is since DN.
If he started to mess up by casting an American, for example, he would lose credibility fast.
So I suppose it will be someone from the Commonwealth, but young - late 20‘s to early 30‘s, not necessarily known already but viewed as an upcoming talent.
Glad to see even more movement. And to think… as recently as this past February we were still under the impression that Broccoli (and maybe Wilson?) would be overseeing the next Bond at EON. And now we have Amazon in charge, a new producing duo, and a director. It took a while for things to get started, but all things considered they seem to be moving quickly to get their ducks in a row.
Given Villeneuve’s commitment to Dune 3, when do we think Bond 26 will be released?
I would agree, the sort of actor you’ve seen in places but you couldn’t immediately name them. Craig, or the quite a few actors who have been The Doctor in Doctor Who, would be that. I know Christopher Nolan aimed for that with Batman and Richard Donner did with his Superman - relative unknown surrounded by a-list.
He can start prep now (and I notice his wife is now an ep on B26) but I guess it depends how long he takes on a film personally. Some can make three films at once, some take 2 years on one production.
Would likely also mean candidates for Bond will hold their commitments for a time; at least if it’s Villeneuve doing the casting*. Theoretically, it could just as well be Pascal & Heyman doing the introduction to the press, while Villeneuve works somewhere else in peace.
*Which may or may not be the case. But I doubt Villeneuve would sign up for BOND 26 if he wasn’t comfortable with the lead.
Not a bad choice, IMO. Villeneuve was I believed offered to direct NTTD and turned it down, so it does seem that Pascal and Hayman are still taking Babs’ and Michael’s choices into account. Hopefully, we get a screenwriter announcement and maybe the reveal of Bond 7 before the end of the year.
I’d rather bring David Arnold back. Unlike most, I’ve never been the biggest fan of Hans Zimmer’s scores. I remember Interstellar basically sounding like Zimmer just fell asleep on his keyboard.
Oh, so good to pop back into CBN when we’ve got actual Bond news!! LOL.. I for one am very excited for Denis Villeneuve taking on B26. I don’t know much of his work but I did love Blade Runner 2049, which had Roger Deakins’ brilliant cinematography and I’ll definitely be crossing my fingers in hope that he’ll come back for another shot at Bond.
He won’t push it off that far. Cleopatra and anything else will be pushed back. Bond is high profile and if they’re announcing it to the press and trade journals, this will fast-track around him (with his input) while he works on Dune Messiah. It will be his next film after DM, but that will likely push it back to at least 2027 for release.
It’s fun to have real legitimate movement taking place and Villanueve is an inspired and encouraging choice.
With him signed the producers will include him in their casting search, of course, but the ultimate decision will be made by them, not him.
This is the setup for many future films, after all, and Villeneuve will have a lot of wiggle room, sure, but I bet he won’t have final cut. He might say he has just to maintain his status, but Amazon needs this to work, so they won’t give him carte blanche.
With him shooting DUNE MESSIAH this summer the timing is perfect for writers to work out a first draft which he can read then during post for DUNE.
The lengthy post and FX work will allow for lots of downtime he can use for Bond, and with his wife being the link as executive producer he won’t have the feeling of being kept out of the loop by Amazon.
Unless this arrangement will sour or DUNE will run into problems and delays, Villeneuve will slide into Bond preproduction, so maybe the rumoured release date of Summer ´26 is still on the table.
But I agree: the next thing to be announced will be the writer(s) and then the actor. But he might only be revealed next year, I suspect, with not too much waiting time until production starts. Makes little sense to have someone declared as the new Bond, and having then more than one year before cameras start rolling. Especially if the public and the critics are as reluctant to accept him as they were with Craig after the press conference. Imagine Craig being announced back then, and two to three years later the film had been released.
Summer '26 for Bond 26? That must be a typo, SAF. As much as I wish that timeframe were possible, I cannot imagine Bond 26 will be in theaters basically a year from now.
Can’t see that. This would be in a year. For a summer '26 release date, they’d already be late if they started shooting now. And we don’t even have a script or leading man. And this one is a new beginning with a fresh team and lead actor, the last thing we need is a rushed production. Late '26 at best, but my money is on '27.
I’m just afraid it might be '28 given Villeneuve’s attachment to Dune. Regardless, as long as they can give us a more regular release schedule once the next era has begun, I don’t care too much about how long this current gap is.
I can’t see this film being ready by summer 2026, maybe (and that’s a big maybe) November '26 and that’s if everyone goes perfectly. My guess is summer-fall 2027 is the likely timeline.
LOL.. I for one am very excited for Denis Villeneuve taking on B26. I don’t know much of his work but I did love Blade Runner 2049, which had Roger Deakins’ brilliant cinematography and I’ll definitely be crossing my fingers in hope that he’ll come back for another shot at Bond. 