Spectre (film)

Cast & Crew
James Bond:	Daniel Craig
Director:	Sam Mendes
Producer(s):	Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli
Writer(s):	Ian Fleming (Characters) John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade (Screenplay)
Facts & Figures
Distributed By:	Columbia Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Released:	UK: October 23, 2015 US: November 6, 2015
Preceded By:	Skyfall
Followed By:	Bond 25

Bond 24 is the working title for the 24th film in the James Bond film series. Daniel Craig has signed on to return as James Bond in Bond 24 and 25.

On July 11, 2013, it was confirmed that most of the creative crew from Skyfall is returning: Daniel Craig is returning as Bond, Sam Mendes is returning as director, and John Logan, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade are returning as screenwriters. The film received UK and US release dates of October 23, 2015 and November 6, 2015, respectively.

Production

Pre-production

Shortly after Skyfall premiered pre-production on Bond 24 began. Bond franchise staples Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson are returning as executive producers and EON Productions, MGM and Sony/Columbia Pictures are returning as production companies. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment secured the rights for home distribution.

With Daniel Craig under contract for two more Bond films, MGM and EON Productions hired Skyfall writer John Logan to pen Bond 24 and 25 as a two-parter, to film simultaneously and release in 2014 and 2015. Immediately after Skyfall Mendes had shown interest in directing Bond 24 but passed the torch in March 2013 in order to focus on his stage work. MGM, EON, and Mendes continued to meet and plan the future of the Bond franchise and decided to abandon the two-parter concept and push back the release of Bond 24 to 2015 to accommodate Mendes' schedule.

On July 11, 2013 it was officially announced that Daniel Craig, Sam Mendes, and John Logan would return for Bond 24 for an Autumn 2015 release.

On October 21 Ralph Fiennes confirmed he would be in Bond 24 saying "I think everyone knows that, I don’t think that’s particularly a secret." On November 24 Naomie Harris confirmed she would also be returning for Bond 24. In February 2014, while promoting his film The Grand Budapest Hotel, Ralph Fiennes revealed that shooting for Bond 24 would occur in October 2014. He also teased that Gareth Mallory might not be stuck behind a desk in the film. In late March 2014 John Logan teased that he had completed the first draft of the script but was cautious to reveal any spoilers about the possible return of S.P.E.C.T.R.E., Quantum, other 00 agents, or other returning elements. In an April 2014 interview with Charlie Rose, Sam Mendes revealed that Bond 24 would be a "continuation" of the character stories he began in Skyfall, namely the new characters' (M, Moneypenny, Tanner, and Q) relationships with Bond and each other.

On June 27 it was announced that Neal Purvis and Robert Wade were hired to polish the script, specifically to "punch up the script and sprinkle in more gags" and improve the banter between Bond, Moneypenny and M. Some reports indicate the re-write may be more significant than originally planned. Due to the re-writes, production has been pushed back to December 6 2014 with the same hopeful autumn 2015 release date.

Cast & Characters

James Bond (Casino Royale).jpg

James Bond
(Daniel Craig)

M
(Ralph Fiennes)

Miss Moneypenny
(Naomie Harris)

Q
(Ben Whishaw)

Bill Tanner
(Rory Kinnear)

Crew

"I am very pleased that by giving me the time I need to honour all my theatre commitments, the producers have made it possible for me to direct Bond 24. I very much look forward to taking up the reins again, and to working with Daniel Craig, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli for a second time."

― Sam Mendes

• Directed by: Sam Mendes
• Written by: Ian Fleming (characters only) and John Logan (screenplay)
• Produced by: Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson

Rumors

Crew

Daniel Craig has been rumoured to have asked for Adele to return to perform the next Bond theme following the success of "Skyfall".  but fans of other artists are rallying for a change of artist between films. It was reported that MGM was getting tired of waiting for Adele to decide whether or not she wanted to do the song, and that Sam Smith was in talks to do the theme for Bond 24 instead, however, it was further stated that Daniel Craig supposedly still wants Adele to do the theme song.

UK tabloid The Sun reported on July 15, 2013 that the film would be based on Sebastian Faulks' 2008 James Bond novel titled Devil May Care, but due to the untrustworthy source it is only a rumor. Other false titles including Come and Dive have also surfaced.

The title The Rough with the Smooth has also been suggested. This was a title Ian Fleming considered, but rejected, for the short story From a View to a Kill.

Entertainment journalist Kristopher Tapley heard from Skyfall cinematographer Roger Deakins that he would not be returning for Bond 24.

Cast

Judi Dench, whose character M died in Skyfall, has joked about a possible return in the next Bond film despite her role as M being passed on to Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes). When asked if she thought Skyfall was her final James Bond film, she jokingly replied: "Certainly not. No, certainly not. I could go on for years. Maybe I'll come back as a ghost. Now that would be Shakespearian," making reference to a previous role.

Benedict Cumberbatch is a fan favorite for the movie's main villain. London-born actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, nominated for an Outstanding Lead Actor Academy Award in 12 Years a Slave is currently considered a "front-runner" for the film's villain. Mendes is looking for a "physically fit or unusual" actor over 6'2" to play an assassin that will challenge Bond in many hand-to-hand fights and driving scenes.

As for Bond girls, Academy Award winner Penélope Cruz is rumored to be a Bond girl in the film as is French actress Lea Seydoux. Other Bond Girl casting rumors include British Downton Abbey actress Joanne Froggatt, Norwegian actress Synnøve Macody Lund as well as Disa Östrand and Ida Engvoll.