Leary and De Palma For Bond 20

In a report on Dark Horizons yesterday, some interesting rumors and thoughts were put forth regarding the next James Bond movie. First off, sources are reporting that Brian De Palma is “sort of headhunting producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson for the task of helming the next feature.” If this is indeed the case, De Palma might have an uphill battle – the Bond series has been exclusively British when it comes to its directors, from Terence Young on Dr. No to Michael Apted on The World Is Not Enough.

Dark Horizons also published an interesting report from a source who claimed to have spoke with Bond series producer Michael G. Wilson. Wilson is reported to have said that a plot centering on and set in Ireland has been considered (apparently because of Bond actor Pierce Brosnan’s suggestion that Bond go to the Emerald Isle). The source also reported that Wilson mentioned interest in Dennis Leary (The Ref) to play “an Irish-American gangster who heads a SMERSH/SPECTRE type of group.”