New James Bond Movie Director Will Be One and Done

27.06.2025 18:24

The future of James Bond movies will not be 100 percent under the vision of director Denis Villeneuve. According to a report from Puck’s Matt Belloni, the acclaimed director of the latest Dune films will only be directing one James Bond film for Amazon. "He won’t have final cut on the film," either, according to World of Reel.

For massive Villeneuve fans, this, if true, might sound like sacrilege. How could an artistic genius not have final cut on his own film? Isn't that the exact same mess that destroyed David Lynch's Dune film in 1984? Well, James Bond movies have never been exclusively the purview of auteurs filmmakers.

While acclaimed and award-winning directors have helmed Bond movies (Sam Mendes' work on Skyfall springs to mind), historically, these directors have never had final cut authority. From the director of the first James Bond movie, Terence Young (on Dr. No) to the legendary Martin Campbell, who rebooted Bond not once, but twice (with GoldenEye and Casino Royale), generally speaking, the producers always get stamp of approval of what the final product of a 007 movie looks like. This is the way Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman did it in the 1960s, and it's how Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson ran things in the 2000s.

In short, while cinephiles might obsess over particular directors, and hardcore Bond fans are aware of the various folks behind the camera for all the films, the discussion of who exactly will direct any given Bond film is generally a very inside baseball discussion. Case in point, everyone loves 1964's Goldfinger, but can you name the director? It's Guy Hamilton, who also directed what are objectively two of the worst Bond films, Diamonds Are Forever (1971) and The Man With the Golden Gun (1974).

Also, amazing directors of beloved sci-fi epics don't necessarily have the golden touch with Bond movies. Star Wars fans regard Irvin Kershner as the genius who turned The Empire Strikes Back into a masterpiece in 1980. But, then, Kershner directed 1983's off-brand James Bond film, Never Say Never Again, and it's hardly anything to write home about. Is the wonkiness of Never Say Never Again the fault of Kershner? No, but it certainly throws cold water on the idea that he was a godlike filmmaker, and it also suggests that a director isn't the only thing that makes a Bond movie (or a Star Wars movie) a success or failure.

The point? M once described James Bond as a "blunt instrument," a kind of means-to-an-end of getting something done. You could argue that any given director of a Bond movie is much the same. Villeneuve is obviously incredibly talented, and his first Dune film in 2021 is nearly perfect, at least with respect to that franchise.

But James Bond is a very different narrative and cinematic animal. Bond fans should probably be happy that Villeneuve isn't getting the final cut, because historically, you kind of want various cooks in the Bond kitchen. There's no script for the movie yet announced, and no actor has been revealed to play the new 007. For now, we have one ingredient of the cocktail for the next Bond, but we have no real idea how this next adventure will be shaken or stirred.

The next James Bond movie is expected to start filming either in 2026 or 2027.