James Bond: ‘Dune’ filmmaker Denis Villeneuve set to direct next film

Dune director Denis Villeneuve has been tapped to helm the next James Bond film – find out more below.

• READ MORE: ‘No Time To Die’ review: Daniel Craig’s surprisingly emotional final fling

Amazon MGM Studios last night (June 25) announced via a press release that Villeneuve has been confirmed to direct the next James Bond film – which will also mark the first 007 film under the studio.

Villeneuve will also serve as executive producer, alongside Tanya Lapointe. As previously announced, Amy Pascal and David Heyman will serve as producers.

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Villeneuve said in a statement: “Some of my earliest movie-going memories are connected to 007. I grew up watching James Bond films with my father, ever since Dr. No with Sean Connery. I’m a die-hard Bond fan. To me, he’s sacred territory. I intend to honor the tradition and open the path for many new missions to come. This is a massive responsibility, but also, incredibly exciting for me and a huge honour. Amy, David, and I are absolutely thrilled to bring him back to the screen. Thank you to Amazon MGM Studios for their trust.”

Besides the Dune franchise, Villeneuve is also known for films like Blade Runner 2049, Arrival, Sicario, Prisoners and Enemy among others.

Further details on the next Bond film have yet to be revealed, including its cast, release date and plot.

As for agent 007 himself, the search is on for the next Bond, after Daniel Craig made his final appearance in the role in 2021’s No Time To Die. In March, it was announced that the long-serving producers of the films, Barbara Broccoli and her half-brother Michael G. Wilson, had stepped away from the creative process and handed over control to Amazon MGM Studios, ending over 60 years of the Broccoli family’s control of the Bond estate.

Bond fans have not reacted kindly to the news of the franchise’s sale, with some predicting that Amazon will “ruin” the series by over-saturating the market with “mediocre spin-offs”.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson has often been considered the front-runner for the role, and last year, it was reported that he had been offered the job, although the actor avoided the question when asked about it on the red carpet for action-comedy The Fall Guy.

In a four star review of No Time To Die, NME‘s Alex Flood wrote: “For the most part, and with so much at stake thanks to COVID decimating cinema, No Time To Die producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson should be applauded for taking some bold risks. The gobsmacking ending, in fact, may be the biggest in Bond history. Yet when the credits finally roll on Daniel Craig’s last hurrah, all those difficulties fade into the background. If we didn’t know better, we’d say it even looked like he enjoyed himself.”

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