Filmmaker Stephen Soderbergh pitched some rather unconventional James Bond movies to then-producer Barbara Broccoli.
"I had pitched in 2008 the idea to Barbara Broccoli of a parallel franchise. [It would be] cheaply made, where you get people like me, who are interested in that approach to do one of these things," Soderbergh told The Playlist, when asked about his first idea. "Set in the ’60s, R-rated, violent, sexy. Fictional backstory to real historical events, different actor, different universe...
"It’s just another lane that exists totally separate from the normal Bond movies. I was just kind of, you know, pitching a hardcore auteur, low-budget period Bond."
The second pitch was for a present-day Bond film starring Daniel Craig, though Soderbergh didn't go into too much detail except for describing it as a "contemporary extravaganza." This would've taken the place of Spectre, which came out in 2015. Given that Soderbergh is the director behind the initial Ocean's 8 trilogy... pitching a Bond movie seems pretty par for the course.
“To be fair to them, it really was a twofer," he continued. "I was like, I want to do both, I have ideas for both. But it’s all or nothing. You’ve either got to do both of them, you can’t have just one or the other, and I think that was just – that was a little aggressive."
A new Bond is indeed in the works, with Denis Villeneuve set to direct the new pic from a script penned by Peaky Blinders creator Stephen Knight. As for Soderbergh, his black comedy, The Christophers, is in theaters now. And no... he has no interest in revisiting or re-pitching The Hunt for Ben Solo. Sorry, Star Wars fans.
The upcoming, untitled James Bond movie is expected to hit theaters sometime in 2028. For more on 007, check our guide to the best James Bond movies, or see the best Prime Video movies to add to your watchlist right now.
