James Bond fans could have had a lot longer to wait for No Time To Die, had the course of the movie’s history taken a slightly different path. In a new interview, producer Barbara Broccoli revealed one major shake-up had her thinking about shutting down production altogether.
It’s no secret the new James Bond film initially had director Danny Boyle on board to take the helm for Craig’s last appearance as the title character.
The movie was announced back in May 2018, but by the end of the summer Boyle was officially out.
That August, Bond producers Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson confirmed the Trainspotting director had departed due to “creative differences”.
Rumours circulated that there had been a difference of opinion over whether or not Craig’s 007 should meet his end in time around.
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Now, the Bond bosses have spoken out about what happened around Boyle’s exit from the project behind-the-scenes.
“It was not about anything specific,” Broccoli told Entertainment Weekly. “The movie he wanted to make [and] the movie we wanted to make were not the same movie.”
Actor Craig also told the publication he was a “huge fan” of Boyle, adding: “I’d love to work with him.
“It didn’t work out. It happens all the time in movies,” he continued.
“I’m very script-driven,” he said. “Writers are as important as the star of the film for me.
“And John was doing a wonderful job. But the producers wanted to go in a different direction.
“It’s silly continuing on something like that — so complex and huge, it would just cause unhappiness,” he added.
Meanwhile, Broccoli went on to say: “Cary wasn’t available originally but he became available.
“He was very excited to join us, and we kept going.”
In a recent interview with Variety, Broccoli emphasised how hard Boyle’s departure was, explaining: “We had mutual respect and admiration, but better to know [their differences in opinion] before you embark on a project.
“We worked together well for a number of months, but there came a point when we were discussing the kind of film that we wanted to make, and we both came to there conclusion we were not aligned,” she said.
James Bond: No Time To Die is released in UK cinemas April 3.