Anyone wanting James Bond to go back to the days of the second half of Roger’s Moore’s tenure, with double-taking pigeons, hover gondolas and an increasingly creaky and girthy middle-aged man bedding glamour model girls left, right and centre is in for something of a disappointment.
Various outlets, of varying quality and credibility, are reporting on this. If the rumors are true, Steven Knight has delivered his 120 page first draft of Bond 26, and he and director Denis Villeneuve are aligned.
Their iteration of 007 will still have the spectacle, but will also go big on psyche, and the tonal reset will go even further and deeper into Fleming than even Casino Royale.
The words being used to describe this Bond are said to be just like the literary version – bruised, volatile, and psychologically exposed. A heavy drinker, and a womaniser who sometimes leaves himself vulnerable because of it.
Villeneuve considers that the chance to reboot Bond is “sacred territory” requiring reverence rather than shock value.
Movie wise, both he and Knight are said to value the emotional tension of Ian Fleming’s early novels for this big screen version of the character, so much closer to From Russia With Love than Moonraker.
It would mean a highly efficient, yet personally flawed 007 who is sometimes not too thrilled about the consequences of his profession. The violence is personal, and the victories often come with some personal cost.
Various “insiders” quoted across several sources say that Knight’s handling of clear masculinity existing within moral gray zones from Peaky Blinders and SAS Rogue Heroes gives his draft “rawness”.
Gadget remain, but they are less of a narrative crutch. The script apparently shifts toward tradecraft, psychological endurance, and the unglamorous reality of killing for a living in a dangerous profession.
This approach is bad news for many of the actors who have been linked with the role. Every agent of every potential candidate has been pushing their man for the role.
However, insiders say that this Bond requires “lethal physicality” and somebody who could believably kill.
As the tone is now set, and the search for the actor has begun in earnest, the notes coming back from the initial discussed on sessions have been said to be brutal:
“Too posh, too clean.”
The leaks say that the legions of British drama school graduates waiting for the call will be finding themselves disappointed, as the director, writer and producers seem to be looking for something else that may well mean the role goes to somebody completely unexpected.
They also want somebody who can be guaranteed to stay in the role for a long time, with a multi-picture deal as part of the gig.
