The Playlist has reported that the upcoming ‘Bond 25’ will be undergoing a script overhaul from Scott Z. Burns.
Director Cary Joji Fukunaga (‘True Detective,’ ‘Maniac’) will be helming Daniel Craig’s last outing as the titular character. Danny Boyle was originally going to direct the film, but creative differences drove him away from the project. Thus, Neal Purvis & Robert Wade came in to finish what they started all the way back in ‘Casino Royale.’ Along with that film, they did all of Craig’s other ‘Bond’ movies: ‘Quantum of Solace,’ ‘Skyfall,’ and ‘Spectre.’ But, that will not be the case anymore for the duo.
Why Scott Z. Burns? A deep dive into his resume:
It seems the ‘Bond 25’ screenplay is not in a state that all parties can agree on, so they brought in one of the more notable script doctors around. Up there with Tony Gilroy and Christopher McQuarrie, Burns will lend his hand at delivering a script everyone will be happy with. Some of his handy work includes ‘Ocean’s Twelve,’ from his regular collaborator Steven Soderbergh, and ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,’ which also had Tony Gilroy on board.
Burns made it big with ‘The Bourne Ultimatum,’ then went on to write three movies in a row for Soderbergh. Those films were ‘The Informant!,’ ‘Contagion,’ and ‘Side Effects.’ Moreover, he wrote two unproduced screenplays in the past: Soderbergh’s ‘Man From U.N.C.L.E.’ and David Fincher’s ‘20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.’ Burns also did an early draft of ‘Dawn of the Planet of The Apes.’ HBO’s ‘Vinyl’ was going to have Burns take over as showrunner for the second season, but that never came to be. Lastly, Burns was brought in by Ridley Scott to consult on the film that later became ‘Blade Runner 2049.’
He just recently got his feature directorial debut ‘The Report’ a premiere at Sundance, and bought by Amazon Studios. Additionally, he wrote the film, so that was definitely a factor in his enlisting for rewrites. As well as the fact he finally became available, in the past he has sought out to write on previous ‘Bond’ films.
So, what’s the plan now?
Burns is currently in London and will be spending at least four weeks rewriting the ‘Bond 25’ script, for a hefty price. After all, he is the last ditch effort to get this project off the ground and in production in a timely manner.
This is not the first time someone has come onboard to rewrite the script either. We reported last month that Paul Haggis did a draft of the screenplay. It was turned in November 22 last year, after Boyle left the project, and our exclusive was recognized by The Playlist today. As expected, his draft will not be used either.
Returning cast members include Ralph Fiennes, Lea Seydoux, Naomie Harris, and Ben Whishaw.
Further, with new a April 8, 2020 release, ‘Bond 25’ has the Easter weekend all to itself now, as opposed to the previous Valentine’s Day weekend it had. However, who knows what will happen next, as it currently needs to meet its April deadline to begin filming.
Source: The Playlist