As recently as this morning, it was looking as if the 23rd Bond installment would be delayed indefinitely, the famed spy served a fatal dose of development poison in the form of MGM's well-publicized financial troubles. But as if resuscitated in the nick of time by a glove-compartment defibrillator, it seems Agent 007 will live on -- even if it means making do with less in these gadget-budget-slashing times. THR reports Sam Mendes is in negotiations to direct the script, by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and Peter Morgan, with the production being fast-tracked for a June start, and a possible 2011 release.
Apparently producers have learned nothing from the lessons of Quantum of Solace director Marc Forster, another chilly European director who isn't above genre-slumming and is about as deep as a martini glass; still, the dreadful, revenge-motivated Solace made $586 million worldwide. Kate as N it is! And Michael Shannon as Truthfinger, who wounds Bond with deep, shattering truths about his middle-class, tuxedo-wearing spy existence, and whose preferred torture technique -- forced DVD viewing of Away We Go -- are more effective than a knotted-rope nut-thwacking any day of the week.