Danny Boyle joins Graham Norton tonight to discuss his movie Yesterday. The film imagines a world where everyone has forgotten The Beetles, except one man. But Boyle has been in public pop-culture discourse for some time now, all related to his work on James Bond 25.
Why did Danny Boyle quit James Bond?
Responding to a fan question on Empire, Boyle revealed the reason he quit directing Bond 25.
Boyle said: “I learned quite a lot about myself working with Bond.
“I work in partnership with writers and I am not prepared to break it up.”
“We were working very, very well, but they didn’t want to go down that route.
“So we decided to part company, and it would be unfair of me to say what it was because I don’t know what Cary is going to do.
“I got a very nice message from him and I gave him my best wishes… it is just a great shame.
“What John Hodge and I were doing, I thought, was really good. It wasn’t finished, but it could have been really good.
“You have to believe in your process and part of that is the partnership I have with a writer.
“It’s like saying ‘Hey, we are going to give you a different editor…’ Those fundamental partnerships are vital.”
Following Danny Boyle’s exit, Cary Joji Fukunaga took over directing duties, still retaining Daniel Craig in the eponymous role.
The movie has hit further potholes including an explosion at Pinewood Studios.
Rami Malek and Daniel Craig are reportedly unable to film together due to an injury Craig sustained and the subsequent recovery time.
As for Boyle’s replacement, Fukunaga returned to a script by Bond stalwarts Neal Purvis and Robert Wade.
Yet the screenplay has not returned unscathed and has seen significant rewrites from the director.
Recently, Fleabag and Killing Eve’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge was brought on to edit, with more changes coming from Craig himself.
Despite the setbacks, the movie is reportedly still on track for its April 3, 2020 release date.
Whether Bond 25 will be good is another question, and according to a source who spoke to the Daily Mail it’s not likely.
The source discussed the new edition to the scriptwriting team, Phoebe Waller-Bridge.
They said: “She’s writing a re-write of a re-write. Daniel’s writing. Cary’s writing.
“The crew reckon they’re working on a well-polished s*** show. They have an outline of plot, but dialogue is all last-minute.
“It’s not the way to make a movie. I would imagine they’ll sort it out in the cutting room.
“That’s where most movies get made anyway. But you’d think the Bond lot would be more together.”
Bond 25 will be out in cinemas on April 3, 2020.