Sam Taylor-Johnson is certainly good with all of this her-husband-as-next-Bond talk. After all, if Aaron Taylor-Johnson is the next 007, she may be the next director of a Bond film. And if so, she’d be the first female filmmaker within the storied James Bond franchise.
On “The Johnathan Ross Show,” when asked if Aaron will play 007, the “Back to Black” director had another idea — or at least a second idea.
“You mean that I might direct a Bond film? The first woman director,” Sam said (via Deadline). “Carry on speculating.”
She added of Aaron, “He’d be great.”
Sam has already directed her husband in two feature films: “Nowhere Boy” (2009) and “A Million Little Pieces” (2018). And she knows her cinema history: In the half-century Bond franchise, there has never been a film installment directed by a woman. Another Sam (Mendes) addressed this very issue in 2022, telling Deadline that the “director has to evolve” just as the role of Bond does across various iterations of the character.
“I think it would be wonderful to see a woman directing Bond,” Mendes, who directed “Spectre” and “Skyfall,” said. “I think it would be wonderful.”
As for the face of the franchise itself, Aaron Taylor-Johnson is believed to have received an offer from Bond producers to take over the next chapter of the beloved literary spy adaptation.
Iconic former Bond actor Pierce Brosnan weighed in on Aaron’s casting rumors recently, telling RTE Radio 1’s “The Ray D’Arcy Show” that Aaron would make for a great 007. The duo starred in 2009 film “The Greatest” together, with Brosnan also producing that feature.
“One of the first movies we made, one of the earliest movies, was ‘The Greatest,’” Brosnan said. “And he was the greatest in it. So, yes, I read the news about his possibilities of being a Bond, so I would definitely tip my hat to the fellow. I think the man has the chops and the talent and the charisma to play Bond, very much so.”
