Who will play the next James Bond remains a mystery, but the writer of the next film isn’t. THR reports that Steven Knight will be the next scribe of the 007 franchise. It’s an inspired choice by Amazon MGM Studios, and feels like a far cry from longtime franchise writers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade.
“It has always been on my bucket list, and it’s fantastic to be invited to do it — I can’t wait to get started,” Knight told BBC Radio 5 in a live bit about his new gig. “I’m hoping that, being a Bond fan for so many years, it will be imbued into me and I will be able to produce something that’s the same but different, and better, stronger and bolder.” A prolific screenwriter, Knight is perhaps best known as the creator of “Peaky Blinders,” but he has plenty of other buzzy titles to his name, including recently “A Thousand Blows” and “Maria,” starring Angelina Jolie.
In the radio interview, Knight shared how he landed the 007 job: new producer Amy Pascal invited him for a meeting, but he didn’t know what about. “I very quickly discovered what it was about and became very excited and hopeful,” he said. “And then the process is…you do some meetings, you discuss some ideas, and then you find out you’ve got it. I found out a while ago, but it was announced last night, which is great.” Knight added that the Bond gig is a “high pressure” job, but, “you’ve just got to do what you do, do it as well as you can.”
Knight is the latest piece of the puzzle to fit into what James Bond will be in its next iteration. The other major piece so far came in late June, when Amazon MGM announced Denis Villeneuve would helm the next film in the franchise. Villeneuve is only on board to direct one film, though. As for who will play 007 next? Said Knight: “That is a very, very good question, and one I can’t give the answer to.” Jacob Elordi, Tom Holland, and Harris Dickinson are apparently the studio’s top choices right now, however.
