(UPDATE: The reported return of Christoph Waltz to the 007 franchise has been confirmed by Variety. Original story below…)
Christoph Waltz sounded pretty darn sure in late 2017 that he wouldn’t be returning as Blofeld in Bond 25. Since that time, the Spectre followup has been …. complicated. It all sounds like quite a fiasco, really, with director Danny Boyle exiting and Cary Fukanaga stepping in as replacement. The film’s currently in production, finally, although Daniel Craig was substantially injured at some point. So it stands to reason that some changes have been made to the original game plan, and in addition to Rami Malek playing the new big bad, might we also see a return from Waltz, the most terrifying man in the world?
This prospect seemed unlikely, but the Daily Mail‘s Baz Bamigboye says that Waltz has been spotted on the Bond 25 set, and he reportedly told a visitor that “[y]ou haven’t seen me.” Hmmmm.
Exclusive:Hello Mr Waltz… we’ve been expecting you.#ChristophWaltz is back as #Blofeld in @007 #Bond25 , shooting scenes at Pinewood studios . When a visitor spotted him , Waltz insisted , “You haven’t seen me.” pic.twitter.com/g1X91cEJbf
— Baz Bamigboye @Deadline (@BazBam) July 11, 2019
Who would have thought that we’d ever hear about Waltz pulling a Bill Murray-style evasion here when (allegedly) spotted? Yet if this is true, it would confirm a previous report from The Playlist that Waltz would be back to scare the pants off of Bond fans again, although one of the sources at the time was also Baz Bamigboye. Well, true or not, it’s certain that Waltz would probably return in a lesser capacity than last time, and surely, Bond 25 producers are keen enough to let a newer Oscar winner take center villainous stage here. No one would complain to see Waltz again, of course! We’d all be too scared that he’d slink out of the screen and murder us all.
Bond 25 will supposedly arrive on April 8, 2020.