Arrival. Blade Runner 2049. Dune. And now, Bond. Amazon MGM Studios just named Québécois auteur Denis Villeneuve the next James Bond movie. (Colloquially known as “Bond 26” until a real title comes along.) Now wielding the keys to the Aston Martin, Villeneuve’s involvement raises big questions about the future for the spy franchise. Mainly: What’s Bond 26 going to look like?
First, the basics. Not only will this mark Villeneuve’s first time working on the series in any form, but also producers Amy Pascal and David Heyman—who took the reins from the Broccolis after they ceded control to Amazon last February. It will also be the series debut of whatever actor will play James Bond next, following Daniel Craig’s retirement in 2021’s No Time to Die. Truly, we’re in a brave new world for Bond.
“I’m a die-hard Bond fan. To me, he’s sacred territory,” Villeneuve said in a statement, where he added that he shared the 007 movies with his father since Dr. No with Sean Connery. “I intend to honor the tradition and open the path for many new missions to come. This is a massive responsibility, but also, incredibly exciting for me and a huge honor.”
Villeneuve is excited to take on Bond—who wouldn’t be?!—but an auteur taking over a revered film series comes with plenty of questions and speculation that a lesser-known director wouldn’t necessarily attract. Amazon MGM’s choice is even more interesting when you factor Villeneuve’s existing body of work, a number of which are expansive science fiction features that oscillate between refined and oppressive sensibilities.
Judging by what we’ve broadly seen across his eleven films (beginning with his filmmaking debut August 32nd on Earth, from 1998), we might get a more tech-sophisticated Bond. You know the scenes where Bond meets Q and gets a fancy gadget? It’s screaming Denis Villeneuve. And whatever the plot might be, you can bet the villain will dwell in some elaborate lair—with lots of empty space, of course—in which they pontificate their plans with deep solemnity.
If Villeneuve leans toward a version of the Bond he grew up on, though, perhaps Bond 26 will be the opposite of what Blade Runner 2049 and the Dunes looked like. (Especially if Dune: Messiah, which begins filming this summer and comes out 2026, doesn’t tucker him out from architectural straight lines and gunmetal-gray color palettes.) A Bond 26 that leans into funkier retro aesthetics, found in the Connery, Lazenby, and Moore eras—or the over-the-top bombast that defined Dalton and Brosnan—or something that’s all of the above, seems plausible for Villeneuve.
Back in 2015, Villeneuve told ComingSoon that directing Bond would be a dream, and that it would be an invitation to try something different. “I understand that each genre has its own specific rules, but for me, they are all movies,” he said. “I’m just attracted to try to do different things, and I was very excited to make a movie that required more action. I was raised with James Bond. I love James Bond movies. I would love to do a James Bond movie one day. Action is very cinematic. I’m not someone that loves dialogue—I am someone that loves movement. Action, if it’s well done, can be very poetic and meaningful.”
In a 2021 appearance on the podcast Happy Sad Confused, Villeneuve called Bond “a dream to do” and “pure cinematic joy.” Whether Villeneuve’s definition of joy means remaking Moonraker or making Bond even more of an iconoclast in a rapidly evolving world is yet to be seen. But the Villeneuve era of Bond is already shaping up to be the biggest paradigm shift since Craig stood up on a sandbar in Casino Royale.
Basically: Get ready for Bond to get shaken, not stirred.
