It is hard to remember a time when writer/director Christopher Nolan wasn’t a top choice from fans and the internet to tackle the James Bond franchise. Nolan himself had talked up the idea of putting his own twist on the spy property (hinting he’d like to do it with his own cast), but it sounds like those brief talks with EON Productions (longtime franchise overseers until this month) didn’t go as great as we’d imagined.
A report from Variety cites sources saying that one of the reasons that franchise producers and Nolan couldn’t settle on a deal. This reportedly came down to Barbara Broccoli refusing the filmmaker final cut approval on a hypothetical Bond movie, as no director would get that under EON’s oversight.
This meeting supposedly took place after Nolan’s infamous experience working with Warner Bros. on the sci-fi actioner “Tenet” (which likely means it was for “Bond 26“) and he tried to figure out what to do next while seeking a new studio partnership. That ultimately led Nolan to push forward with “Oppenheimer” at Universal Pictures and finally securing a Best Director statue.
With Amazon’s power play to shell out $1 billion for full creative control, putting Brocolli and Michael G. Wilson on the sidelines, they might want to reconsider another go with Nolan once he’s finished with “The Odyssey” as a final cut clause likely wouldn’t be a make-or-break deal for Amazon MGM Studios.
Then again, Nolan may decide against the idea of doing Bond at all and will just continue along with his originals. Either way, we’ll be just content that Nolan is doing what he wants creatively.
Another angle removed from the picture with Amazon’s buyout is the age limit set for casting that producers wanted to stick with. Folks 40 years old and above were seemingly ruled out as potential 007 contenders, pouring cold water on those Henry Cavill and Tom Hardy whispers (Aaron Taylor-Johnson being the last rumored name that made sense based on EON’s criteria).
However, we’re not entirely sure that Amazon is going to be rushing out to sign high-priced talent and folks with nightmare schedules given these movies already have cost a hefty $200-300 million-plus in the past.
We’re still in new territory here as there could be some major growing pains ahead, buckle up.
