Ways to Observe 007 Day When the Next 007 Is a Secret?

Arriving this weekend is 007 Day, in case you missed it – October 5th has become a international festivity honoring everything about 007, due to it marking the day of the international launch of the first Bond film, starring Sean Connery, in the year 1962. Think of it comparable to the Star Wars celebration, but with less Wookiees and Ewoks and much more tuxedoed swagger.

A Low-Key Celebration This Year

But on this occasion, the coming of James Bond Day is a bit underwhelming. It's only been following the acclaimed director was confirmed as the director the upcoming 007 movie back in June, and not long afterwards since Peaky Blinders’ Steven Knight was enlisted to pen the screenplay. But there’s been little to no sign since then of the new 007 actually being revealed, with minimal clarity concerning the path this iconic film series is going next. The only information is industry speculation through film industry sources indicating that the creative team will be looking for a relatively youthful British actor, possibly from a diverse background although not a female actor, a big-name celebrity, or somebody remotely familiar.

Letdown for Betting Agencies

This is, of course unwelcome developments for the numerous gambling platforms that have generating substantial revenue for months now through efforts to suggest bettors that the competition is among a shortlist of actors plus the charismatic star from Saltburn who is actually Australian.

A Return to Newcomers

Interestingly, the previous instance the 007 series chose a total unknown was in 1969, with George Lazenby for a short time carried the famous firearm. Before that, Sean Connery certainly wasn’t a star: he performed some small movie parts plus occasional stage and modelling work as well as working as a bodybuilder and milkman in Scotland before landing the starring part in the debut movie. The creative heads intentionally rejected a household name; they sought a new face whom audiences would accept as Bond himself, rather than as an actor playing Bond.

Employing this strategy again might prove to be an ingenious move, just as it was back in the sixties.

The Villeneuve Factor

But getting Villeneuve on board suggests that there are no excuses in any way should the next 007 proves to be wooden. Amplifying the over-the-top gadgets and innuendo is off the table under the guidance of is an artistic director known for genre films best known for dense futuristic stories where the dominant feature is deep philosophical tension.

A bruiser in a dinner jacket … Daniel Craig in 2006’s Casino Royale.

Fresh Approach for 007

Nevertheless, in many ways, hiring Villeneuve reveals a great deal we should understand concerning the fresh era after Daniel Craig. It's unlikely there will be any invisible cars or double entendres, and the return of the southern lawman in the near future. These changes are, of course, quite alright assuming you enjoy your James Bond updated for today. However, it leaves unclear how Villeneuve’s take on Britain’s suavest state-sponsored assassin will stand out compared to previous Bonds who immediately preceded him particularly should the new era doesn’t choose to place the plot in the initial decades.

Transforming Every Period

Craig stood out at once as a different type of dapper super-spy when he arrived in the role in 2006’s Casino Royale, a tough character in formal attire who would never be caught dead in a stealth vehicle, or trading sex puns with co-stars while defusing a nuclear warhead. He caused Brosnan's tech-dependent charmer that just a short time before had been considered by some the finest agent since the original, appear as a copycat version badly reheated. Not that this is anything new. After Connery came Lazenby, Brosnan came after the underrated Timothy Dalton, and the silly final Moore films came after the intense early Moore. Each Bond period reshapes the previous, however, every version remains distinctively the famous agent, worthy of celebration. It's somewhat strange, as we apparently celebrate this year’s Bond Day, that we are being invited to honor a character who doesn’t even exist yet.