NO TIME TO DIE (2020): Set Problems And Setbacks Plagued BOND 25

James Bond star and former director speak about series’ problems

James Bond never seems to die, but he can sure take a beating. Ironically, so can his encompassing franchise.

No Time To Die (2020), the 25^th entry in the decades-long franchise, is the latest Bond vehicle to be dealt massive hits, and its star Daniel Craig is getting a little annoyed about it.

“It pisses me off,” said Craig in a recent GQ profile about his time as the iconic secret agent. Craig also lashes out at reporters who are quick to write off the production as “cursed”.

“…I’m just like, ‘Don’t curse our movie,’” he retorts. “And also, we’re doing our best here.”

No Time To Die is not the first Bond film to be hit with production problems, but it is the latest. Quantum of Solace was infamously known for beginning shooting without a script, and Spectre had multiple rewrites going on whilst in the midst of production.

A Rough Timeline

In August 2018 the film saw a director shake-up, when Danny Boyle stepped down over creative differences between the producers. Cary Joji Fukunaga was brought in as replacement, but then in May 2019 Craig underwent ankle surgery after an on-set accident. The following month, a controlled explosion went wrong and damaged much of the set. Topping it all off, a worker was arrested for sexual harassment at the film’s studios.

And that was all before the new year.

On March 4, 2020, in the wake of the worldwide COVID-19 outbreak (a.k.a. coronavirus), No Time To Die distributors MGM and Universal confirmed that Bond 25 will be postponed by seven months. The film has been pushed back from its original April 10 release date and will now bow on November 25.

This is not the first event in the entertainment world to be affected by COVID-19, but it may be the first postponed film release. SXSW and many other festivals and events have been postponed and/or cancelled outright in the wake of the pandemic.

Director’s Commentary

The British actor isn’t the only one to comment on the insurmountable problems of franchise filmmaking. Sam Mendes – the director of the prior two Bond outings, Skyfall and Spectre – has also felt overwhelmed by the series’ clout.

Mendes likened the productions to a survival game rather than a creative exercise. He also opines the cultural weight of working on something so massive, and how he was working to please both producers’ and fans’ expectations.

“There has always been an element that Bond is on the wing and a prayer,” said Mendes. “It is not a particularly healthy way to work.”

A Hopeful Ending

Despite all the setbacks and frustrations, Craig seems satisfied with his time in the James Bond role.

“I’m okay,” he laments. “I don’t think I would have been if I’d done the last film and that had been it. But this, I’m like….Let’s go. Let’s get on with it. I’m fine.”

He even screened a rough cut of No Time to Die just for himself, to provide some closure for his decade and a half of work on the series.

“I think it works,” Craig said.

No Time to Die is direct by Fukunaga and stars Craig, Léa Seydoux, Rami Malek, Lashana Lynch, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Ana de Armas, and Jeffrey Wright. It opens stateside from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and United Artists Releasing on November 25, 2020

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