New quotes from Spectre and Skyfall director Sam Mendes to BBC News confirm that indeed the upcoming Bond film will be the director’s last installment. We don’t often see directors make back-to-back Bond features, and to say the productions are taxing on filmmakers is an understatement. I’m sure people will likely point to the released Sony emails, dealing with budget and script leaks, but it might be that Mendes has other projects he’s itching to make next instead.

“I said no to the last one and then ended up doing it, and was pilloried by all my friends. But I do think this is probably it…I don’t think I could go down that road again. You do have to put everything else on hold.”

The question now is, who will direct Bond 25?

Daniel Craig’s Bond contract does include one more film, so the assumption is he’ll indeed finish-up the role with one more outing. However, that could all change depending if he’s able to turn down the role over creative reasons, or a lack of confidence in the installment.

We know that Skyfall took around four years to develop, and had many different drafts of the script before they nailed-it-down. There’s some hope that John Logan will again write the script, and create another strong character driven story for Craig.

As for directors, we have no idea who producers might be looking at the moment. Although, we do know that in the past they’ve talked to the likes of Danny Boyle and even Christopher Nolan. The latter has suggested an interest in tackling Bond with a new actor, which makes more sense he’d would want to make Bond 26, not Bond 25. Possibly, starting from scratch again.

Of course, there are plenty of amazing directors that could fill the director’s chair but I have three currently in my mind for the gig. I expect that the Bond producers might seriously consider more Oscar caliber talent to tackle Bond installments in the future, since Mendes’ Skyfall did earn over a billion for them. The level of detail on the production oozed quality, which you would expect from Bond, but in recent years that hasn’t always been the case. With that in mind, here are some names rattling in my head for Bond 25.

British director Steve McQueen has proven beyond a doubt he’s one of the hardest working and talented directors today. Earning an Oscar for his third feature film 12 Years A Slave, the director’s other films Hunger and Shame are equally as powerful cinematic character driven experiences. I think he’d bring a certain edge/style to the Bond franchise that would fascinate fans for decades.

I know people want his muse Michael Fassbender to play 007 next, but you know he’d make a better villain and Steve could easily talk him into being apart of the film. But, then again, McQueen and Fassbender teaming-up for Bond 26 could be equally inspiring. A major hinderance would be Steve’s likelihood of turning down a big studio gig to tackle a smaller/personal project instead, it doesn’t hurt to dream big though.

Now, I normally don’t suggest David Fincher for projects like this, but considering how amazing The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo was, it’s hard not to imagine him doing a larger than life spy flick. I think I’d melt if a Bond film had his visual style pumped into it. His past working relationship with Daniel Craig could also come into play, like it did with the hiring of Sam Mendes. My only hesitation would be that Fincher might not be on the best terms with Sony, and would want to limit his interactions with them as much as possible.

In the past, I’ve excluded Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow (Hurt Locker, Point Break, Zero Dark Thirty) out of director contentions for superhero projects, and for good reason. Her own quotes suggest she’d never consider doing that. Bigelow now tackles hard-nosed action, with more or less reality-based characters. That said, I think having her make a Bond installment would give her fans some genre material and prove again she’s the queen of action films. She’d add a grounded sense to the action giving it a bit more gravitas and stakes, which sometimes are thrown out the window to be over the top. It also wouldn’t hurt to have a female director being able to keep an eye on the misogynistic stuff from finding it’s way into these films. If Bond producers were even able to get a meeting with her, I’d be over the moon.

Also, having John Logan teaming-up with Mark Boal could be something magical in itself. It’s not that crazy, considering Boal recently penning the Uncharted film for Sony.

Who would you like to see direct the next Bond movie before Daniel Craig’s exit?

SOURCE: BBC NEWS