Though Skyfall has been a massive success for the Bond franchise, it wasn’t a done deal that director Sam Mendes would return to oversee any follow-up. Indeed, Bond directors usually make one film then move on. But now it looks like Mendes is tempted to reunite with Daniel Craig for another shot.
It’s still nowhere near locked in – no contracts have been signed yet – but according to Baz Bamigboye (who was a reliable reporter on Skyfall’s development), Mendes is now 75% of the way towards accepting the job.
Apparently he’s been won over by producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson deciding not to go with John Logan’s idea of two linked films for Bond 24 and 25. It now appears that the two movies will stand alone. Since that means two films won’t be shot back to back, Mendes isn’t faced with giving up four years of his life to work on them, which would put a kink in his theatre and other plans. He’s busy gearing up the musical version of **Charlie And The Chocolate Factory **ready for May at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane and also wants to direct Simon Russell Beale in King Lear at the National in January.
Given the long lead time for Bond movies, the next film will likely be pushed into pre-production either late this year or early next, and we’d expect the likes of Ralph Fiennes, Naomi Harris and Ben Whishaw to all show up and join Craig on his next outing.