About those Bond 26 director rumours

I talk about two recent stories about potential Bond 26 directors in the UK press.

Just recently, two stories about potential Bond 26 directors appeared in the UK press.

Personally, I’m glad to see the media is now focusing on the right thing. If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you’ll know I’ve been saying forever that the first thing to expect is a director to be in place.

With a director, they can move on to things like casting a new James Bond. The director is always involved in that decision.

It probably won’t stop the tabloids though, since speculation about Bond actors gets more clicks than stories about directors.

Anyway, the first story appeared in The Telegraph on 25th August, just a few days after Calvin Dyson published a video titled “The Future of James Bond | A Pulse Check” in which he discussed why it’s taking so long for Bond 26 to get moving.

Calvin Dyson’s video: The Future of James Bond | A Pulse Check

In fact, I’m inclined to believe Calvin’s video actually prompted the article. One of Calvin’s key points was that before a Bond actor is chosen, there needs to be a director.

The second article appeared in The Times on 1st September, and covers much of the same ground, but with quotes from various Bond commentators.

The Telegraph article stated, quote, “another name understood to be on Eon’s radar is Germany’s Edward Berger,” unquote—a claim also repeated by The Times. Berger directed All Quiet on the Western Front.

Although neither article names a source for this info, the claim was first made in a World of Reel piece back in July. Given World of Reel’s track record on Bond 26 so far, that claim wasn’t taken seriously by the people I talk to about Bond.

Shortly after these articles were published, Berger himself denied it.

While promoting his new film Conclave, Berger told Deadline, “There’s no truth to it whatsoever. I would be very grateful if you put out that fire.”

But what about the other directors mentioned?

The Telegraph suggests Eon are looking for someone like Martin Campbell, who successfully launched both Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig as Bond.

While I don’t disagree with that—someone like Martin Campbell—I don’t think Campbell himself is an option.

Even though he’s still directing films, Campbell is 80, and I can’t imagine him wanting to get involved, even if Eon were seriously interested. Just ask Michael G. Wilson how age slows you down. He’s only a few years older than Campbell, but not by much.

So, who will it be?

It won’t be Nolan. He’d want too much control. Denis Villeneuve has expressed interest, but with Dune 3 now greenlit, I think his hands are tied.

Maybe we should expect the unexpected.

What do you think? Who should direct the next James Bond film? Let me know in the comments.