SPECTRE Review Thread

[Scorpion Soldier]

BAZ BAMIGBOYE: Director Sam Mendes has James Bond back in his sights after Skyfall's phenomenal box office success

Bond has never been bigger, thanks to the phenomenal box-office success of Skyfall, directed by Oscar-winner Sam Mendes.

And people have been asking whether he will return to direct the next one, known for now as Bond 24.

He had initially been reluctant because screenwriter John Logan was planning to write a two-part story that would have been shot back-to-back, which would have taken four years out of the director’s life.

It would have meant long stretches for the cast, too - led by Daniel Craig, Ralph Fiennes as the new M, Naomie Harris as Miss Moneypenny and Ben Whishaw playing Q.

That plan has been jettisoned, and Bond 24 and 25 will be stand-alone pictures.

Mendes hasn’t firmly made up his mind about directing another Bond, but I’m reliably told he’s ‘75 per cent’ of the way towards doing it.

At present, Logan’s thoughts for Bond 24 are in the form of two treatment papers outlining a rough idea of the plot.

So, in theory, Mendes is on board, but wants to see the finished script before he fully commits.

The only people who have seen the Bond 24 blueprint are Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson (the extraordinary producing duo behind the 007 franchise), Mendes, Craig and a handful of key executives at Sony and MGM.

Once everything falls into place, pre-production on Bond 24 could start late this year or early 2014, though Mendes couldn’t work full-time until he has finished directing Simon Russell Beale in King Lear, which opens at the National Theatre next January.

Meanwhile, the director is putting together the musical version of Roald Dahl’s Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, which begins performances at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on May 18.

Skyfall triumphed at the EE British Film Academy Awards by taking best British film, while composer Thomas Newman won best original score.

In Los Angeles, cinematographer Roger Deakins collected the top honour at the American Society of Cinematographers for his work on the movie.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz...e-success.html

Would definitely like Mendes to return for another one. Nothing confirmed of course, but I like the thought of him returning.