Normally, it’s not really huge, breaking news that a movie that is supposed to begin filming soon is going to, in fact, begin filming soon, but when it comes to the recent history of the James Bond franchise, any production news is great news. Originally supposed to begin shooting in November, the unnamed 24th film of the celebrated franchise is now officially set to begin filming on Dec. 6, according to Variety, which puts it on track for its UK and US release dates of Oct. 23, 2015 and Nov. 6, 2015, respectively. Daniel Craig, Ralph Fiennes and Ben Whishaw are set to return, with Skyfall director Sam Mendes also on board.
As for the rest of the details, well, the name of the movie might as well be Your Guess is as Good as Mine. But for the sake of scratching all of your James Bond itches, here is a rundown of the most recent, reputable and widely spread rumors about how Bond 24 might look once it finally hits the screen next year:
– According to the James Bond fan site MI6, everyone from HQ is returning for Bond 24, with the exception of Judi Dench, obviously. That means that Naomie Harris will still be providing the sexual tension between Moneypenny and Bond.
– Additionally, MI6 reports that the three locations featured in Bond 24 – or at least those that will be used for filming – will be Austria, Rome (specifically, a car chase) and Morocco.
– Back in April, it was rumored that Oscar nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor was Mendes’s choice to play the main villain in 24. As recently as last week, his name was still at the top of the rumor pile, because his IMDB profile has Bond 24 listed, and he doesn’t have much else in the works.
– The actual bad guy, though, is going to be an “old evil organization,” which suggests that as the 25th anniversary approaches, we could see SPECTRE coming back into play. That’s basically what it seemed like they were trying to do with Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace, but it all fell apart, and we instead got the wonderful Skyfall. Obviously, the evil organization needs a leader, so that would be the role that Ejiofor is attached to.
– Like any good global supervillain, Bond 24’s bad guy is going to need “a classic physically imposing character,” perhaps as a tribute to the recently-deceased Richard Kiel, whose Jaws lives on as the greatest Bond henchman. So how do you pay tribute to that legacy? By bringing in TV’s biggest badass – Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, AKA The Mountain from Game of Thrones. Again, that’s just a rumor and the role isn’t even listed as rumored on his IMDB page, but YES PLEASE.
– Bros, what about the Bond babes? As recently as May, Blake Lively and Amber Heard were rumored to have been up for a Bond girl role, but that definitely seems to have changed. Just about every site with a rumor to share claims that Mendes and Co. are casting a “Scandinavian-born blonde actress” for one Bond girl role, but it is also believed that another Bond girl will be British. Despite both of those nationalities, Schmoes Know claimed in a “HOT SCOOP!” last month that Blue is the Warmest Color actress Lea Seydoux is on the short list for one role that may or may not be double agent Miranda Frost, who was previously portrayed by the angelic Rosamund Pike in Die Another Day.
– All right, we’ve got the top rumors for the bad guy and his henchman, as well as the Bond girls, locations and even a continuing theme for Bond 25. What about the title song? Which music artist is going to try to follow Adele’s incredible “Skyfall” anthem? Well, remember back in 2010 how everyone on Earth knew it was Adele, but she and the movie’s producers still denied it? British soul singer Sam Smith has recently been named as the artist to take on the Bond 24 song, but he has since denied that. He’s a perfect, timely choice, so short of U2 deciding they want the honor, let’s go ahead and pencil Smith in.
– Finally, while Metro thinks that James Bond should die at the end of 24, perhaps for some sort of character renaissance for Bond 25, Daniel Craig is still signed on for at least one more, which means that Denzel Washington is going to have to wait a little while longer.
