It’s all the talk of the town in Hollywood that David Heyman and Amy Pascal are in talks to produce the next James Bond film under Amazon MGM Studios.
This will be the first time an official 007 movie has ever been overseen by someone other than the Broccoli family at EON Productions, who sold their creative control to the streaming giant in a near $1 billion deal.
The latest rumour is that four-time Oscar winner Alfonso Cuarón has pitched his “new take on 007” to Amazon MGM, who have already assembled a 007 writers room.
The Mexican filmmaker is best known for directing Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Children of Men, Gravity and Roma.
He’s not made a movie since the latter seven years ago, having been focused on his Apple TV+ series Disclaimer, so could Bond 26 be his next?
Hollywood insider Matt Belloni said on The Town podcast: “It’s an informed, speculative pick. And it is not Chris Nolan. I think the fact that he’s tied up for the next year and a half on The Odyssey, I just don’t think Amazon wants to wait that long. I think Jeff Bezos says, ‘Give me my Bond movie now,’ and they just cannot wait. The fact that they went directly to these producers suggests […] they want to move pretty fast on this. I think it’s going to be Alfonso Cuarón. I’ll tell you why. He has a long relationship with David Heyman. They go back to Gravity. They go back 21, 22 years to Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. They’ve worked together a long time. They’re friendly. I have heard that there are some talks, that there is a take, and that they are serious. Now, it’s not like he’s negotiating or anything like that, but my prediction is that Alfonso Cuarón will direct the next James Bond.”
Interestingly, the director revealed last year that he turned down a 007 movie under the Broccolis in the Daniel Craig era.
According to Variety, Cuarón said: “Ages ago I was offered a Bond film. And I said, ‘Yeah, cool. Maybe Bond. I am going to do one.’ And then when the process started and I was going to shoot all the dialogue and stuff, there was a [separate] team doing all the action scenes. It kind of felt very weird. I was troubled about the idea of doing it. I had dinner with Joel Coen, and I said, ‘Joel, what do you think of Bond?’ And he said, ‘Oh cool, I enjoy Bond.’ I said, ‘Would you do a Bond film?’” According to Cuarón, Coen replied: “It probably falls into the category of a film I want to watch but not do. There I learned the lesson that some films I prefer to watch and not do.”
However, time has passed, and given that creative freedom is now available at Amazon MGM, perhaps he’ll dive in for a reinvention. Considering how highly praised his Harry Potter film and Children of Men are, with their colder, darker vibes reminiscent of a Nolan movie, he could be an excellent alternative to the Oppenheimer director.