ENTERTAINMENT / Movies
James Bond, Narnia under new management
(E! Online)
Updated: 2007-06-22 14:20
Los Angeles- He'll always take orders from M, but James Bond's next
mission is going to be crafted by a 007 rookie.
Finding Neverland director Marc Forster has been tapped to helm the next
installment of the 45-year-old Bond franchise, what will be the 22nd film
featuring the oh-so-suave secret agent.
The German filmmaker recently wrapped the big-screen adaptation of Khaled
Hosseini's bestseller The Kite Runner. Before that, he tried his hand at
comedy with Stranger Than Fiction; was nominated for a Golden Globe for
his work on the fantastical Peter Pan-inspired drama Finding Neverland,
which also scored Johnny Depp his second Oscar nod; and directed Halle
Berry to an Oscar win for Monster's Ball.
"I have always been drawn to different kinds of stories and I have also
always been a Bond fan, so it is very exciting to take on this
challenge," Forster said. "The new direction that the Bond character has
taken offers a host of new possibilities." He and Oscar-winning Million
Dollar Baby scribe Paul Haggis are expected to start tackling a first
draft that was written by Neil Purvis and Robert Wade.
Daniel Craig, the first blonde Bond, will be back for a second go-round
after turning in a much-appreciated performance in Casino Royale that
actually made his dapper daredevil of a character seem a little rough
around the edges��but in a good way.
And despite being inured to Pierce Brosnan's know-it-all smirk, audiences
seemed to dig a Bond who pointedly replied, "Do I look like I give a
damn?" when a bartender asked the eternal question, "Shaken or stirred?"
In turn, Casino Royale, based on the first novel in Ian Fleming's series
revolving around the seemingly immortal MI-6 agent, grossed more than
$594 million worldwide.
The as-yet untitled chapter, being referred to by studio heads as Bond 22
for now, is slated to start shooting in London in December, with a
release date of Nov. 7, 2008.
Also changing hands is the burgeoning Chronicles of Narnia series, which
is actually now heading under the tutelage of a former Bond movie
director.
The World Is Not Enough director Michael Apted will be taking the reins
from Andrew Adamson, who oversaw The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and
the upcoming Prince Caspian (all based on the novels by C.S. Lewis), and
set sail with The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, due out in 2009.
"We're thrilled that [Apted] will be directing The Voyage of the Dawn
Treader and feel that he brings his own unique sensibilities, filmmaking
experience and vision to the project," Oren Aviv, president of production
for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, said about the British
filmmaker, who's also currently president of the Directors Guild of
America.
"This latest Narnia adventure will take people to an entirely different
side of Narnia that no one has ever seen before, and is filled with lots
of action, adventure, magic and wonder," Aviv continued. "We think
moviegoers are going to be thrilled with this all-new installment."
Prince Caspian makes its debut first, however, on May 16, 2008, long
before The Voyage of the Dawn Treader hits theaters May 1, 2009.
Apted most recently worked with Disney on last year's Amazing Grace,
about Britain's abolitionist movement in the 19th century.
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