During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson explained what kind of commitment they want from the next James Bond. “We don’t just cast someone for one movie,” Broccoli said. “We offer someone, hopefully for a decade, at least. It’s a big decision we have to make, and we’re not close to making that decision.” That’s right – the new 007 has not been cast. At least, not yet. “When we get to a point, like we are now, we have to think about the trajectory of the Bond films and the stories and where we want to take them,” he added. “Well, that’s really the main goal in the beginning. Once we figure out where we want to go, then we’ll start thinking about casting.” Ever since Daniel Craig stepped down as 007 after No Time to Die, fans have been busy speculating about who will take up the mantle next. We’ve seen the likes of Tom Hardy, Idris Elba, and even Tom Hiddleston. But Broccoli went on to explain why taking the role is a huge decision. “Any actor who would think about that has to think about how it would change their life,” he explained. “Daniel was certainly reluctant when we first approached him and as I say about him, his life changed, but he didn’t. He was always the same amazingly wonderful person in the beginning as he is now.” Craig first suited up for the 2006 Bond film Casino Royale and spent the next 16 years as the infamous British secret agent. “You become an ambassador for the movie and people recognize you as connected to the character,” Broccoli added. “It has a lot of different elements to it. But the time commitment is definitely a long-term commitment, and not everyone is willing to do it – multiple images over many years. Daniel has finished 16 years.” The Next James Bonds Who Never Played 007 Who ends up taking on the role remains to be seen. But it sounds like the next Bond film will start by working on its villain. “We always sit down with our writers and start by thinking, what are people afraid of?” said the broccoli. “We start by thinking, ‘Who is the Bond villain?’ We’re trying to focus on that as a kind of uber story, and then we also want to look at Bond’s emotional life and what he’s going to face personally that he hasn’t had to deal with before. So he has two big themes in the movies — one is geopolitical and the other is personal.” Want to read more about James Bond? Find out why some 007 favorites might be too old to play James Bond and why John Williams would love to star in a Bond film. Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.
