Sky begins to fall for Bond 23
The cameras have finally started rolling on the next installment of the James Bond Franchise, with the Oscar winning Sam Mendes taking the helm of Skyfall. Revealing the title at a news conference with the cast and director, the producers described it as "the worst-kept secret in London."
The cameras have finally started rolling on the next installment of the James Bond Franchise, with the Oscar winning Sam Mendes taking the helm of Skyfall.
Revealing the title at a news conference with the cast and director, the producers described it as “the worst-kept secret in London.” The word “Skyfall” spread across the internet when the studio registered it as an internet domain name.
The production was delayed by financial problems at MGM but with a budget in the same ballpark as 2008’s Quantum of Solace now in place, the release date is set for October next year, fifty years after the release of Sean Connery’s first outing as 007, Dr No. “All the money is going to go on the screen,” enthused producer Barbara Broccoli.
Mendes confirmed that Skyfall won’t be linked narratively to Craig’s previous outings as Bond; Quantum’s continuation of the Casino Royale storyline was seen as a weakness in some quarters. It will be filmed on location in Whitehall, Scotland, China and Turkey, as well as at Pinewood Studios, but there were few clues given about the plot; all the studio has said is that “Bond’s loyalty to M is tested as her past comes back to haunt her.”
Daniel Craig’s Bond and Dame Judi Dench’s M will be joined by Albert Finney and Ralph Fiennes, with Javier Bardem playing the villain. Ben Whishaw – the star of Perfume and the recent TV series The Hour – also has a role. The “Bond Girls” will include Naomie Harris as a field agent named Eve and the French actress Berenice Marlohe, starring as the “glamorous, enigmatic” Severine.
Mendes was quick to quash chatter that his take on Bond would be more drama and less action. “It will have all the elements of a classic Bond Movie, including – to quell any rumours – a lot of action,” he assured reporters.
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