Sam Mendes will not direct Bond 24

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Skyfall director rules himself out of 007’s next outing

Skyfall director Sam Mendes has confirmed that he will not direct Bond 24 , according to the official James Bond 007 Facebook page .

Since the record-breaking success of James Bond’s 23rd movie outing, speculation has been rife that Mendes would jump back into the director’s chair for the next installment (or Bond 24 , as it’ll be known until it gets an official title).

It seems that Mendes’ theatre commitments are key factors in his decision not to return to the franchise, despite the fact that producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbra Broccoli evidently wanted him to return.

In a statement, Mendes said, “It has been a very difficult decision not to accept Michael and Barbara’s very generous offer to direct the next Bond movie.

“Directing Skyfall was one of the best experiences of my professional life, but I have theatre and other commitments, including productions of Charlie And The Chocolate Factory and King Lear , that need my complete focus over the next year and beyond."

In a joint statement, Wilson and Broccoli added, “We thoroughly enjoyed working with Sam. He directed our most successful Bond movie ever, Skyfall . We would have loved to have made the next film with him but completely respect his decision to focus on other projects and hope to have the opportunity to collaborate with him again.”

In October 2012, Mendes spoke to Total Film of his reticence to direct another Bond film after Skyfall , explaining, “I think there’s a strong possibility that I put everything I ever wanted to put in a Bond movie into this movie.”

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