The “Bond 25” saga has taken yet another twist in what is frankly becoming one of the most tedious stories in Hollywood (seriously Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, just pick a director and stick with it). Yesterday, word emerged that in the ongoing hunt for a director of the next James Bond movie, Danny Boyle‘s name came into the mix. At the time, no formal offers had been made, but a lot has changed in 24 hours.
Deadline has filled in the gaps, and they’re reporting that Boyle pitched an idea for his own version of a Bond movie. Producers Broccoli and Wilson warmed to it, so now Boyle and regular collaborator John Hodge (“Shallow Grave,” “Trainspotting,” “A Life Less Ordinary,” “The Beach,” “Trance,” “T2 Trainspotting“) are working out the story beats, with the latter penning the whole script.
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It’s going to take a couple of months, but once it’s in, Broccoli and Wilson will decide whether or not to run with it, with Boyle directing. If they pass, they’ll return to the script they already have penned by longtime franchise scribes Neal Purvis and Robert Wade (“The World Is Not Enough,” “Die Another Day,” “Casino Royale,” “Quantum Of Solace,” “Skyfall,” “Spectre“), with longtime frontrunner Yann Demange (”’71,” the upcoming “White Boy Rick“) directing.
I understand why the Bond producers (and probably Daniel Craig) want to go with a bigger name behind the camera, and someone like Boyle would certainly bring a lot of verve to the franchise. But this is two months they could be spending on pre-production rather than waiting on a script to be finished. (Remember, the last minute crunch of filmmaking for “Spectre” nearly drove Craig insane). Moreover, it’s a bit classless to keep Demange dangling on the line, and it’ll be interesting to see if he’s content to wait this out, or starts taking a look at other projects.
Undoubtedly, there’s more to come. “James Bond 25,” directed by Somebody, opens on November 8, 2019.