Christopher Nolan is one of the few Hollywood filmmakers who can make original studio films with virtually unlimited budgets and creative freedom. Since concluding his groundbreaking trilogy of Batman movies with “The Dark Knight Rises” in 2012, Nolan has used that freedom to make original blockbusters like “Interstellar” and “Tenet” and historical epics including “Dunkirk” and this weekend’s “Oppenheimer.” But he has always been open about the fact that one piece of IP could lure him back into franchise filmmaking: James Bond.
Nolan frequently professed his admiration for the British spy series while promoting his Batman films a decade ago, noting that he had met with franchise producer Barbara Broccoli about potentially making his own 007 film. But Daniel Craig was still firmly ensconced in the role of James Bond, and Nolan indicated that he was only interested in directing a film if he could choose his own leading man.
Now that Craig has vacated the role and the search for his replacement is underway, could Nolan reconsider joining the franchise? In a new appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the director refused to rule out the possibility.
“I love those movies. The influence of those movies on my filmography is embarrassingly apparent. You know? So there’s no attempt to shy away from that. I love the films,” Nolan said. “It would be an amazing privilege to do one.”
Nolan acknowledged that directing a Bond movie would likely mean surrendering a bit of the creative freedom to which he has grown accustomed. He emphasized that he would only take on a project of that nature if he felt that his vision was in line with the expectations from the franchise’s stewards.
“When you take on a character like that, you’re taking on a set of constraints,” he said. “You have to have the right attitude towards that. It has to be the right moment in your creative life where you can express what you want to express and burrow into something within the appropriate constraints. You don’t ever want to take on something like that and do it wrong.”
