While Bond 26 remains elusive, 2025 offers plenty for fans to celebrate, from anniversaries to 4K classics.
2025 might not bring us Bond 26, but there’s still plenty to celebrate for fans of 007. From iconic anniversaries to exciting new releases, this year promises more than you might expect. In this article I’m going to look at the year’s new releases, the big Bond anniversaries, and talk about what I think we need to be looking out for that might indicate some progress on Bond 26. So, if you’re ready, let’s go.
New releases
They’re not to everyone’s taste, but many fans like Kim Sherwood’s Double O novels, with the final book in that trilogy arriving in April. But there is another spin-off series due out too, the new series by Vaseem Khan that will follow Major Boothroyd as he becomes a crime fighter. We’ll see what that brings to us.
But much more than that, the release that has got a lot of James Bond fans excited is the release of Sean Connery’s Bond movies on 4K Blu-ray. They’ve been available on 4K streaming before, but this is the first 4K physical release. After The James Bond Dossier reported on that news in December it became one of the most popular on the website and was one of the top 10 most viewed pages in December, so there are a lot of people looking forward to it.
Last year saw a number of new soundtrack releases by La La Land Records. La La Land recently announced another new expanded soundtrack, this time Licence to Kill, so look out for any further releases from them this year.
Anniversaries
There are some big anniversaries this year and although I’m not aware of any fan events planned to mark these anniversaries, I’m pretty sure something will come up, so keep your eyes open.
- 70 years since Moonraker (1955) It’s not my favourite Bond book, but I know a lot of people love it. It describes a part of the UK that Ian Fleming knew exceedingly well. Although it’s not my favorite, it does have some great descriptions.
- 60 years of Thunderball (1965) This is probably my favourite Bond film. I’ve always loved it—I like the settings, I love all the scuba diving scenes, and it probably inspired me to become a certified scuba diver quite a number of years ago. It is also 60 years since Ian Fleming’s final novel, The Man With The Golden Gun, was released.
- 50 years since Dr. No premiered on British television (1975) It’s hard to believe, but it’s been 50 years since Dr No was first shown on ITV. I can still remember the excitement of seeing those early Bond films on television. This year also marks half a century since my first ever Bond film – my dad took me to see The Man With The Golden Gun in the summer of 1975.
- 40 years of A View to a Kill (1985) It’s far from being my favourite Bond film but I know a lot of people love it, so if that’s you, then you can celebrate 40 years of May Day and Max Zorin this year.
- 30 years of Goldeneye (1995) This is the perfect opportunity to rewatch Pierce Brosnan’s debut as Bond. Goldeneye brought a lot of new Bond fans on board and I was crucial to the series thriving. Probably Bond 26 will need to fulfil a similar role to ensure the Bond films continue.
- 20 years since Daniel Craig was announced as Bond (2005) I vividly remember the live stream of the Daniel Craig’s introduction as the new 007. He was taken by speedboat to HMS Belfast, where the press conference took place and he nervously answered questions from the press. There was a huge backlash from both the tabloids and a small subsection of fans but when Casino Royale was released it really silenced all those critics.
- 5 years since Sean Connery’s passing (2020) This year marks the fifth anniversary of Sean Connery’s death. The original big screen 007 remains unsurpassed in the minds of many fans, as demonstrated by the interest in the 4k release of his Bond films.
I’ve probably managed to miss something, so you can tell me in the comments if I have!
Bond 26
Just before Christmas the Wall Street Journal reported that relations between Barbara Broccoli and Amazon have pretty much completely broken down. Reading the article and the way it was written, I think the bulk of what’s in there is true, and there is a big problem between them. This explains the lack of progress on Bond 26.
It might also explain why Barbara Broccoli is involved in so many other projects at the moment. If she can’t make any progress on Bond 26 right now, she has likely decided to focus on other things to keep herself occupied in the meantime.
Even though the Wall Street Journal article says there’s been no progress on Bond 26 at all, I think it’s likely there has been some movement, perhaps on the concept if not a full script. Without an actual announcement from Eon and Amazon, we need to pay close attention to any rumours that are swirling and discard the wild speculation and unreliable sources, of which there are many.
At the moment, we need to forget about the actor—it’s far too early for that. If they don’t have a script or a director, they won’t cast the actor. What we need to watch for are rumours about the script progressing, whether they’ve contacted or signed writers. Maybe it’ll be Purvis and Wade again, or maybe not. Once we know there are writers on board, the next step is to look for rumours about directors.
There has been a lot of speculation about directors, but nothing amounted to much. Perhaps Barbara Broccoli has been talking to directors, but they aren’t at the stage to sign anyone yet. They need the script to be in good shape first. Ignore any hysterical headlines, and once a director is confirmed, there’s likely to be an official announcement along with a tentative release date.
If Barbara Broccoli and Amazon can’t resolve their differences, none of this may happen in 2025. If production does start this year, we’re likely looking at a 2027 release. It’s a slow and painful process, but eventually, something has to give. Either Amazon will meet Barbara Broccoli halfway, or Eon might decide to sell up. While I don’t think the latter is likely, it’s not impossible.
Closing thoughts
Even without Bond 26, the world of James Bond remains alive and thriving. The James Bond Dossier has been receiving more traffic than it has in years, which shows that the demand for Bond-related content is as strong as ever.
What are you most excited about this year? Is it Sean Connery in 4K, the anniversaries, the new Q Series, or something else entirely? Let me know in the comments!
Really looking forward to the Connery 4K releases ( apart from Diamonds Are Forever, anyway!!)