Peaky Blinders boss Steven Knight has offered an update on the new James Bond movie, revealing whether he has an actor in mind for the coveted role.
Last month, it was announced that Knight would be penning the next instalment in the James Bond franchise, which is currently known as James Bond 26.
Asked about the upcoming film by Radio Times magazine, Knight said: “I can’t talk about it”, before being quizzed on some more general aspects of the 26th film in the long-running franchise.
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On whether he would be injecting some of his trademark grit into the new project, the writer said: “We’ll see, we’ll see… You don’t know what’s going to happen until you start writing.”
Speaking about who might play the coveted role of 007, Knight said he didn’t know and would pen the script without an actor in mind.
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Questioned whether he was writing the script with no one in mind, Knight replied: “Er… yes.”
The writer further called writing the new Bond “exciting and thrilling” to The Sunday Times, before touching upon his writing technique.
“I have no plan of how I’m going to get there,” he said. “Though I do know this character’s going to do this, this, and then they’re going to die, or they’re going to become king. So that’s the plan.”
Back when his involvement in the British spy franchise was announced, Knight promised a “better, stronger and bolder” Bond storyline for fans.
“It has always been on my bucket list and it’s fantastic to be invited to do it – I can’t wait to get started,” he said during an interview on the BBC Five Live Breakfast show.
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“I’m hoping that, being a Bond fan for so many years, it will be imbued into me and I will be able to produce something that’s the same but different, better, stronger and bolder,” he added.
Although a lead actor is yet to be announced, things are falling into place for the next Bond movie, with director Denis Villeneuve already confirmed as director.
“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,” the Dune director said in a statement.
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Harriet is a freelance news writer specialising in TV and movies at Digital Spy.
A horror enthusiast, she joined Digital Spy after working on her own horror website, reviewing films and focusing largely on feminism in the genre.
In her spare time, Harriet paints and produces mixed-media art. She graduated from the University of Kingston with a BA in fine art, where she specialised in painting. She also has an MA in journalism from Birkbeck University.