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Amazon MGM Studios has named Denis Villeneuve as the director of the next James Bond film in a sign that the company is moving quickly to revive the franchise just months after it took full creative control from the Broccoli family.
Villeneuve is known for his science fiction works, including two Dune films, Arrival and Blade Runner 2049. The French-Canadian director will also serve as an executive producer of the new Bond film alongside filmmaker Tanya Lapointe.
“I’m a diehard Bond fan,” Villeneuve said in a statement. “This is a massive responsibility, but also, incredibly exciting for me and a huge honour.”
The company is starting to talk to potential screenwriters, but is remaining tight-lipped about the most-discussed detail of the next film: who will be cast as the next James Bond.
In March, Amazon gained control of the Bond intellectual property rights from Barbara Broccoli and her stepbrother, Michael Wilson. Broccoli’s father, Albert Broccoli, oversaw the franchise for decades before his daughter and Wilson took control of it.
Amazon had been eager to capitalise on the rights to the Bond franchise, the crown jewel of its $8.45bn acquisition of MGM in 2022. But no Bond film has been released since No Time to Die in 2021, as Broccoli clashed with Jen Salke, the former head of Amazon MGM Studios. She stepped down in March.
At the same time, Amy Pascal and David Heyman were appointed as producers of the new Bond film. Both have a record of blockbuster successes. Pascal was the head of Sony’s motion picture division and launched the studio’s successful Spider-Man franchise. Heyman produced the Harry Potter and Paddington films.
With Villeneuve in place, the focus will intensify on Amazon’s search for an actor to play James Bond.
“James Bond is in the hands of one of today’s greatest filmmakers and we cannot wait to get started on 007’s next adventure,” said Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios.
Broccoli named Daniel Craig as the new 007 in 2005 and appeared to struggle to come up with a replacement. When it was announced that Broccoli and Wilson were handing over creative control, Amazon executive chair Jeff Bezos crowdsourced the search for the next 007. “Who’d you pick as the next Bond?” he posted on X, receiving more than 30,000 replies.