It has been two years since Daniel Craig hung up his pistol and Omega watch after the release of No Time to Die.
But fans desperate to know who will be the next 007 have a long wait before they are left shaken or stirred.
Producer Barbara Broccoli said there is “a big road ahead” before the character was “reinvented for the next chapter”, and that executives “haven’t even begun” the process of modernising the franchise.
She added that the next film would have to reflect the way the world has changed in the two decades since Craig was confirmed as the sixth 007 and pointed out that Bond has often been reinvented.
“I go back to GoldenEye when everyone was saying ‘the cold war is over, the wall is over, Bond is dead, no need for Bond, the whole world’s at peace and now there’s no villains’ – and boy was that wrong!” she said, adding that modernisation is necessary whenever a new actor plays the part.
With Craig they “wanted to focus on what a 21st-century hero would look like”.
She added: “Daniel gave us the ability to mine the emotional life of the character … and also the world was ready for it. I think these movies reflect the time they are in, and there’s a big, big road ahead reinventing it for the next chapter and we haven’t even begun with that.”
She was speaking to the Guardian about the new Bond-themed Amazon series, 007 Road to a Million, which she said was “a nice fun thing to be doing in the meantime” and would hopefully help fill fans’ hunger for the famous franchise.
Broccoli and her half-brother, Michael G Wilson, have been involved in the casting for the global adventure series that features nine pairs of everyday people enduring physical and psychological challenges in Bond-related locations to win £1m. It is the first time the Bond brand has been allowed to be used in unscripted TV and it features the film’s theme tune, epic settings and imagery.
When asked if there might be other Bond TV spin-offs, she said: “Our focus is making the feature films. When we get going on a Bond movie it takes our full attention for three or four years so that’s our focus.
“We make the Bond movies for the big theatrical screen and everything about the Bond movies is for audiences to see around the world on that format, so we’ve not wanted to do television.”
Broccoli said the programme has “same ethos of heroism, courage and fortitude we do in the movies … I think it’s really good entertainment and that’s what people need”.
Wilson said the show, a collaboration between Amazon Studios, Eon Productions, 72 Films and MGM Alternative, is “made for a general audience but Bond fans can find special Easter eggs in there”.
The Britishness associated with Bond is also captured in the casting of the contestants, who represent the UK’s diversity and who also provide, particularly in a pair of brothers from south London, the “very British sense of humour” 72 Films co-founder David Glover wanted.
Broccoli, whose father was fundamental Bond producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, hopes to make versions with other countries. “We haven’t quite gotten there yet; we want to launch it and see the response … but I would love to see the various versions around the world, from Africa, India and Asia.”
007: Road to a Million will air on 10 November on Prime Video
