Bond 26 questions: The Variety interview edition

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So, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson gave an interview to Variety. The Eon Productions duo again said James Bond won’t return to theater screens soon and they’re looking for the next actor to make a long-time commitment.

However, there were other interesting tidbits. Naturally, the blog has questions.

How many Bond films will get made during an actor’s “10-, 12-year commitment”?

That’s the kind of commitment the Eon pair said they’re looking for from a new Bond actor. But at the current rate of production, that might only be three films. The Eon series had only two entries — Skyfall and SPECTRE — during the entire decade of the 2010s.

Yes, there were external factors, including Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s bankruptcy in 2010 and COVID-19 in 2020. But some of the gaps were self-imposed, including putting off the development of what became No Time to Die to try and get Daniel Craig back for another movie.

Will Bond 26 with a new actor really be that much different than Craig’s run?

One passage in the Variety story suggests not.

Both Wilson and Broccoli, who is a director of the U.K. chapter of women’s advocacy org Time’s Up, have left their mark on Bond, particularly in humanizing the once-womanizing spy and ensuring more fulfilling, meatier roles for the female stars of the franchise. These are qualities that will continue in the next films, says Broccoli. (emphasis added)

What are they up to in the interim?

Barbara Broccoli is one of the producers of Till, a fact-based film about the lynching of 14-year-old Emmett Till in 1955 and its aftermath. It’s due out next month. Wilson “has written a TV show that the duo are looking to set up,” according to Variety. And both are involved in producing an Amazon streaming show 007’s Road to a Million. That is currently in production, Variety says. Amazon also owns MGM.

MGM stays mum about No Time to Die

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer stayed mum about No Time to Die during an investor call this week.

Christopher Brearton, MGM’s chief operating officer, said No Time to Die “sets MGM up for a tremendous second half of 2021.”

That was the only mention of the 25th James Bond film in the executive’s prepared remarks. The executive also referenced a movie, to be made on MGM’s Orion brand, based on the killing of Emmet Till, with Eon Productions’ Barbara Broccoli as one of the producers.

No Time to Die has been delayed five times from its original fall 2019 release date. Three of the delays have been due to COVID-19.

In recent weeks, the virus has mutated with its Delta variant causing a spike in cases and hospitalizations. So far, the Bond film is scheduled to be released Sept. 30 in the U.K. and Oct. 8 in the U.S.

No Time to Die is being released in North America by United Artists Releasing, a joint venture of MGM and Annapurna Pictures. Universal is releasing the movie internationally.

MGM has agreed to be acquired by Amazon for $8.45 billion. The deal is subject to regulatory review, including an investigation by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

Bond 25-related odds and ends

Since last week’s announcement that Bond 25 was getting pushed back to Feb. 14, 2020, there have been some related moves by other studios.

–A third Kingsman movie has grabbed Bond 25’s former U.S. release date of Nov. 8, 2019, according to multiple outlets, including The Hollywood Reporter.

Baz Bamigboye, entertainment news scribe for the Daily Mail (known for his 007 scoops) said in a Sept. 21 tweet that the movie would be set in World War I.

In response to questions on Twitter, he specified the following day the film would be a prequel to the first two Kingsman movies. So we’ll see.

–Originally, Warner Bros. had an untitled movie based on DC Comics characters slated for Feb. 14, 2020. Subsequently, Warners named the project — Birds of Prey, with Margo Robbie as Harley Quinn — according to various outlets, including Deadline: Hollywood.  “Mr. Warner” also moved it up one week to Feb. 7.

Meanwhile, not directly Bond related, but Eon Productions boss Barbara Broccoli has a new non-007. It’s titled Till. The movie is “centered around Mamie Mobley Till, the mother of Emmett Louis Till, a Black teen who was lynched after being accused flirting with a white woman in the Jim Crow-era South,” according to a Deadline description.

Till will mark the feature film directing debut of Jesse Williams. Broccoli is one of five producers attached to the project, according to the Deadline story.