British director Mendes might direct next Bond film

British director Mendes might direct next Bond film

The director of the 2008 Leonardo DiCaprio/Kate Winslet drama ”Revolutionary Road,” Sam Mendes, is in talks to helm the 23rd installment of the James Bond motion picture franchise.

According to an article on HollywoodReporter.com, “Production is being fast-tracked and could begin as early as June with an eye toward a 2011 release. Plans for the film are moving forward despite a possible sale of MGM. Sony co-produced and distributed the most recent installment of the 007 series with MGM.”

The writing team will include recurring Bond scribes Neal Purvis and Robert Wade along with the writer of 2008’s "Frost/Nixon" Peter Morgan. The as-yet-unnamed motion picture will be produced by Bond film franchise regulars Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli and Daniel Craig will reprise the role of the suave, Martini-drinking British secret agent 007.

The HollywoodReporter.com article goes on to mention that this project is a tad out of the director’s comfort zone, “The film will be Mendes' first action-heavy project, though his 2005 effort ‘Jarhead’ was set amid U.S. war in Kuwait. Mendes' most recent directorial effort, the road-trip dramedy ‘Away We Go,’ grossed $10 million domestically last summer.’”

The last Bond motion picture, 2008’s “Quantum of Solace,” was directed by Marc Forster and grossed $586 million worldwide.

Mendes won the Academy Award for Best Director for the 1999 Kevin Spacey/Annette Bening/Thora Birch drama “American Beauty.”