Gravity director Alfonso Cuarón might just be closing in on the director’s chair for James Bond 26. More on the growing rumours here.
After much speculation and rumours, with several directors’ names being banded about, Alfonso Cuarón has emerged as the frontrunner to direct Amazon’s reimagining of 007 James Bond. The long-running series has entered a new phase, now falling under the creative control of Amazon Studios for the first time. We’ll also be getting a new actor filling Daniel Craig’s tuxedo and a new director to work alongside David Heyman and Amy Pascal as producers. The plan is to fast track James Bond 26, whatever it ends up being called.
One director who has previously been touted for the role is Alfonso Cuarón, the filmmaker behind Gravity. While he hasn’t made a film in several years, Cuarón’s work on Children Of Men, Roma and Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban showcase his ability to balance storytelling with special effects and action set-pieces – all things that a decent James Bond movie require.
The Mexican filmmaker revealed last December that he’d been involved in a Bond movie years earlier, but felt that having a second unit team direct all the action while he shot the dialogue “felt very weird” and he eventually pulled out. Perhaps this long-running, divided approach to making Bond movies will change under Amazon’s ownership – something that could help tempt filmmakers Cuarón back into the fold.
Read more: No Prime To Die | What does the Amazon MGM deal mean for the future of James Bond?
With Amazon reportedly keen to get a new film into cinemas by 2027, Heyman and Pascal are likely getting key personnel in place with some haste. Along with the actor who will play the new Bond, the film’s director is likely top of that list. Stories have suggested that writers have already been hired and now, Cuarón himself has seemingly confirmed that negotiations have taken place and that he is keen to take on the challenge.
This weekend at a masterclass session in Paris, Cuarón seemed to tease his discussions with Amazon MGM. According to Dark Horizons, attendee Simon Robert posted the quote and indicated that Cuarón didn’t actually say the name of the film series in his answer, but was seemingly pointing to Bond when he said:
“There is indeed THIS project under discussion, and I have the desire – if it happens – to revisit this story in my own way.”
While that still isn’t a final confirmation, it’s a further hint that Cuarón is indeed the filmmaker in the hot seat… or close to it at least. He’s certainly an interesting choice, and Bond fans will surely be looking forward to finding out in greater detail what ‘his own way’ looks like. We’ll bring you more as we hear it.
