The news that Denis Villeneuve would be taking on the next James Bond film was certainly exciting for many, and as we continue to speculate about who might take over as 007, we’re also learning more about who else will be working behind the scenes on the film.
We now know that Steven Knight, the writer behind Peaky Blinders, will be writing the next Bond movie. While Knight is best known for his work on TV, which includes Peaky Blinders and the recent Stephen Graham series A Thousand Blows, he’s also the writer behind Spencer and Maria.
Given his TV work, we know that Knight has a remarkable facility with character, although this will be the first time that he’s collaborated with Villeneuve. Amazon, who is newly in charge of the creative decisions behind this long-running franchise, is clearly placing a lot of weight behind this first film under a new actor. Villeneuve is one of the biggest names to ever direct a Bond film, and is coming off of remarkable success in adapting Dune to the big screen.
Whether the new James Bond is ultimately a success will come down, at least in part, to who they cast in the central role. But now that it’s been a full four years since Daniel Craig’s version of the character said goodbye in No Time to Die, it’s clear that Amazon is preparing to get the train moving on their version of the character. Whether it can live up to everything that’s come before remains to be seen.
