Christopher Nolan hasn’t yet revealed what his follow-up to the critically acclaimed “Oppenheimer” will be, but it won’t be a James Bond film.
In an interview with the Associated Press on Nov. 13, the director shot down any rumors or reports that he was in talks with Bond studio Eon Productions to direct the 26th Bond film, which will see a new actor take over the role of 007 after Daniel Craig made his exit in “No Time to Die” in 2021.
“No, sadly no — no truth to those rumors,” Nolan said. “But I’m very relieved that the strike is over and we can all get back to work.”
In past interviews, Nolan has not shied away from admitting that the Bond series has influenced his work, particularly on action and espionage-heavy films like “Inception” and “Tenet.” In an appearance on the podcast “Happy Sad Confused” this past July, Nolan said Bond’s impact on him is “embarrassingly apparent” and that it would be an “amazing privilege” to direct a Bond film, though many things would have to be aligned for him to actually do it.
“It has to be the right moment in your creative life where you can express what you want to express and really burrow into something within the appropriate constraints because you would never want to take on something like that and do it wrong. You wouldn’t want to take on a film not fully committed to what you bring to the table creatively,” he said.
“Oppenheimer” has grossed over $950 million at the global box office, becoming the highest grossing biopic in history and catapulting Nolan and his lead star Cillian Murphy to the front of the Oscar race. True to form, Nolan has remained quiet about what his next project will be, as “Oppenheimer” was not announced until September 2021, a full year after “Tenet” was released.
Similarly, Eon Productions has continued its policy of keeping developments on James Bond’s future completely under wraps. Two years after Craig’s exit, there have been no announcements on his successor or when production on “Bond 26” might begin.
