Anatole Taubman Speaks Out On His Role

Bond 22 villain Anatole Taubman

Anatole Taubman, who scored a villain role in Bond 22
earlier this week, has given different German-speaking media hints and tid-bits about his engagement in
Bond 22.

"I’m playing – besides Mathieu Amalric – the second big villain of
James Bond in the film. It’s not the henchman kind of thing, it’s a really big
role. I’m not allowed to tell you more", Taubman stated in an interview with

persoenlich.com and added that he had to sign a "Non Disclosure Agreement".
"Everyone who is signed on Bond has to accept it. Every detail is protected."
Asked, whether he had already seen the script, Taubman said: "I alreay received
a copy, but I treat it like a treasure. I even don’t take it with me when I need
to go abroad."

Taubman also spoke out on director Marc Forster and their Swiss connection (interestingly
enough, Marc Forster doesn’t even have a Swiss passport – actually, he’s a
German who grew up in Switzerland, but he is always refered to as a "Swiss"). "I
don’t think that I got the role because I’m Swiss. The only difference to other
auditions was that the director welcomed me in Swiss German language." Taubman
thinks highly of Forster: "The job is quite a challenge for Marc, but otherwise
he wouldn’t have accepted the offer at all. Because of Daniel Craig, the James
Bond character has been re-invented in the last film. So this makes a further
development of the character possible. And because of Marc Forster, the 22nd
Bond film will become a great one! His films are coined by sensibility and
character depth."

In another interview with Swiss newspaper
Blick,
Forster precised that his film’s character is French. "My wife and my children
are the most important things in my life. They are my foundation. Although the
Bond film role is a golden ticket, the working part is yet to come. And
it is much work – at last, I want to go down as a bad Frenchman into Bond history!"

Keep watching CommanderBond.net for all the latest coverage and details on Daniel Craig’s upcoming 007 film!

Gemma Arterton Cast As Bond Girl?

Gemma Arterton

According to corresponding article’s in today’s

Sun,
Guardian and

Daily Mail, 22 year old British actress Gemma Arterton has won the audition
for a Bond girl role in Bond 22. Still, there remain big doubts about the
validity of these articles.

Little known Arterton beat out 1,500 other women to win the part, according
to the papers. The reports claim an insider at Eon Productions said of
Arterton: "Gemma has the modern look and fits perfectly with the new vulnerable
image of Bond." According to the "Daily Mail", Gemma learned of her success only
this week and has been sworn to secrecy until the complete cast is revealed
later this month. "The Sun" claims that Gemma sent her mother Sally a text
saying: "I got Bond!" Interestingly enough, Mother Craig also broke the news of
her son being cast as James Bond.

What makes the story doubtful is the fact that the last information Bond fans got
was that producers are looking for a South American Bond girl and that auditions
had taken place in Brazil and Panama. There is also the possibility that Arteron
has landed a minor role in Bond 22 and tabloids are vaporizing up the story.
Bond fans will know by the end of the month.

Keep watching CBn for all the latest coverage as the Bond girl casting heats up.

Austria Becoming More And More Likely For 'Bond 22'

Festival House in Bregenz
(Image copyright Bruno Klomfar)

Shooting for Bond 22 in Austria is becoming more and more likely. Austrian media report today that Swiss movie company Unicorn, who has previously worked on two James Bond movies, GoldenEye and Tomorrow Never Dies, has been hired as local production company in the Vorarlberg region. Unicorn Boss Leonhard Gmür has confirmed that his company is already at work and that a casting of 1,500 extras will take place in January.

No contracts between Unicorn and the Bregenz Festival have been signed yet, but negotiations with the leading team for the Tosca production who has to agree on the use of the stage design and direction are currently going on. An agreement will hopefully be found before the end of 2007.

Floating Stage with ‘Tosca’ Set (Image copyright Bregenz Festival, Karl Forster)

Because of this situation, there is no fixed schedule, but it is planned to start shooting on the Bregenz floating stage by 27 April. These scenes are intended to be filmed at nighttime. Also, a short driving scene will be shot in Feldkirch.

Austria was first mentioned for Bond 22 back in July when the “Seebühne” (Floating Stage) in Bregenz was brought up as a possible location.

CommanderBond.net will keep you updated with all the latest news and details on the locations to feature in Bond 22.

Anatole Taubman Is Bond 22's Henchman

Bond 22 henchman Anatole Taubman

Swiss actor Anatole Taubman has been cast as henchman in the yet untitled 22nd James Bond film. Taubman announced this today in Swiss TV show glanz & gloria on SF1: ‘James Bond – that’s like playing the Champions League. For a European actor, this is like a gold ticket. There’s nothing better. I’m very happy.’ He’s also looking forward to working with Marc Forster. ‘We got along very well during the casting and we have a lot in common.’ Taubman is not allowed to tell any specific details on his role as he was sworn to secrecy, but he confirmed that he has a personal trainer as the role is physically demanding. Reports indicate that it’s an important role with lots of action and dialogue scenes. Shooting for Taubman is reported to go from January until June at various locations.

Taubman was born in Zürich in 1971 from an Austrian mother and an East German father. He grew up in England and Switzerland and moved to New York at the age of 21 to study at the Circle in the Square Theatre School. He then returned to Europe where he played a number of roles in Swiss and German TV series and movies. He also played in a number of international productions, such as the 2008 release Taken starring Liam Neeson and Famke Jansen, Æon Flux (2005) and the mini series P.O.W. and Band of Brothers (both 2001). Taubman currently lives in Berlin with his girlfriend, with whom he has two daughters.

With the recent confirmation of Mathieu Amalric as the the villain last week and now this announcement, it looks like the casting of Bond 22 baddies is coming together. Keep watching CommanderBond.net for all the latest coverage and details on Daniel Craig’s upcoming 007 film.

James Bond Back In The Driver's Seat Of An Aston Martin DBS

Daniel Craig with the Aston Martin DBS

Aston Martin today announced that James Bond would be back behind the wheel of an Aston Martin DBS in next year’s Bond 22.

The DBS made its first appearance in last year’s Casino Royale, in which it broke the world record for the most cannon rolls in a car.

Aston Martin signed a three-film contract with Eon Productions, starting with 2002’s Die Another Day; Bond 22 will be the third picture of this deal.

The full press release follows.

Aston Martin DBS to star in new James Bond film

Gaydon, December 10th 2007: Aston Martin announced today that their new flagship model, the DBS, will once again be driven by James Bond (DANIEL CRAIG) in the next 007 film to be produced by Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli for EON Productions, and directed by Marc Forster.

The Aston Martin DBS made its first public appearance in Casino Royale when it smashed its way into the Guinness World Record books for ‘The Most Cannon Rolls In A Car’. The record-breaking stunt saw stuntman Adam Kirley taking the helm of Bond’s famous Aston Martin. The stunt proved one of the most spectacular in movie history when he rolled the DBS an amazing seven times.

Aston Martin Chief Executive Officer, Dr Ulrich Bez, said: “Aston Martin is proud of our long association with James Bond. The DBS has its own unique character which equals that of James Bond. It is explosive power in a black tie. It is the perfect car for James Bond as it delivers the complete driving experience and bridges the gap between our road and track cars – the DB9 and DBR9. It is equally at home on a twisting mountain circuit as on the open road and we are all very excited at the prospect of seeing it on the big screen again.”

Bond 22 (working title) is scheduled for international theatrical release in November 2008.

According to reports (SPOILERS), the Aston Martin will be involved in a chase sequence in Tuscany.

Keep watching CommanderBond.net for the most up-to-date James Bond news on the web.

"The most interesting place for a James Bond movie to go is inward – deeper into Bond himself."

After remaining relatively tight-lipped over his upcoming job of helming Daniel Craig’s second James Bond film, Swiss director Marc Forster has given an interview to The New York Times that focuses almost exclusively on 007.

Bond 22 director Marc Forster

“I was surprised, and I had to think hard about whether I wanted to do [Bond 22],” the award-winning director of Monster’s Ball and Finding Neverland said. “I’m not sure I could have found a way into Bond before Daniel Craig reinvented him.”

Forster said Craig offered “a completely new interpretation of the character … very isolated, a man who’s damaged in some way. This James Bond is darker, more tormented. He’s humanised, in a sense.”

Which is precisely the direction Forster wants to take the character. “In the ’60s and ’70s, when Sean Connery and Roger Moore were playing the role, a large part of the appeal of the James Bond movies was the travel to exotic locations, but that’s not such an attraction anymore,” Forster said. “People travel a lot more now, and with the Internet they’re more aware of what the rest of the world is like. In a way the most interesting place for a James Bond movie to go is inward – deeper into Bond himself.”

That won’t stop Bond 22 from being a globe-trotting adventure, though; Forster revealed a recent location scout to Panama also included a stopover in Chile and a flyover of Brazil.

“I’m not sure I could have found a way into Bond before Daniel Craig reinvented him.” – Marc Forster

Despite openly admitting to being “not really an action director”, Forster said he was “very pleased” with Oscar-winning writer Paul Haggis’ script, delivered just two hours before the Writers Guild of America strike began. “It’s a script I can shoot.”

Forster’s introduction to James Bond appears blurry. “I can’t really remember what the first James Bond movie I saw was. It must have been in the mid-’80s, because there was no television in my house, and I didn’t see many movies until then. Roger Moore was in it, I think.”

However, the director admits to having a good feeling about Bond 22. “You know, James Bond’s mother is Swiss. That will make it all worthwhile.”

For the full interview, check out The New York Times website.

Keep watching CommanderBond.net for the most up-to-date James Bond news on the web.

'I really thought I was going to ruin it'

Paul Haggis, who has recently been big news in the world of 007 because of his work on the Bond 22 screenplay, sat down for an interview with The Guardian‘s Mark Lawson to talk about his new film, In the Valley of Elah and, among other Bond-related details, his fear of forever ruining the 007 series.

As earlier reported, Haggis said that despite the current WGA strike, production on Bond 22 is still moving ahead. ‘[The script] was just about finished,’ he said. ‘I was just doing the last few polishes and it starts shooting in a few weeks.’

Paul Haggis

When asked if he was surprised at being initially approached to assist with Daniel Craig’s debut Bond film, Haggis replied: ‘Well, yes, when they came to me with Casino Royale I thought they were out of their minds. I asked my agents, “have they seen my movies?” I said, “they know I am going to ruin Bond forever. They know that right?” But they said they’d like to take a chance and it was a collaboration with Michael [G. Wilson] and Marc [Forster] and they asked me to work on this one, which I was more than happy to.’

Lawson then brought up the point that Bond 22 would be different since Casino Royale had additional screenwriters (Neal Purvis and Robert Wade), to which Haggis added: ‘There had been on this one as well but they decided to take the plot in another direction, which often happens.’

‘I really thought I was going to ruin it, but I thought it would be a heck of a lot of fun trying. And so when they encouraged me to take that darker side of Bond I ran with it. I think it’s the job of the writer to make the producers nervous and the job of the producers to talk sense into the writer. But they’ve been very supportive and they are very supportive on this one. We send things back and forth and I like that. I don’t always like people who agree with me. I like people who challenge me, because there are too many people in Hollywood who just tell you what you want to hear.

– Paul Haggis on Casino Royale and Bond 22

After the interview, Haggis then answered several questions from the audience in which details were revealed on how Casino Royale‘s finale in Venice was originally envisioned somewhat differently:

‘I loved the script and I loved Daniel Craig and [the producers] were really supportive,’ said Haggis. ‘They came to me and I said: “I think the biggest problem with the script is that you don’t have an act three. Would you like one?” And they said yes…

Lawson: So that’s Venice?

‘Yeah, and the draft that was there was very faithful to the book. And there was a confession. So in the original draft the character confessed and killed herself. And then she sent Bond to chase after the villains. And Bond chased the villains into the house. And I don’t know why but I thought that Vesper had to be in the sinking house and Bond has to want to kill her and then try and save her and she has to kill herself.’

There’s much more… Check out the entire two-page interview with Paul Haggis at The Guardian website.

Keep watching CommanderBond.net for all the latest news and details on Bond 22, which hits theatres in November 2008.

'Bond 22's' Marc Forster Is Sworn To Secrecy

Bond 22 director Marc Forster

Marc Forster, who’ll guide James Bond back to cinema screens next November, is still remaining tight-lipped about what 007 fans can expect from Daniel Craig’s second film in the series.

Speaking at the premiere of his new film, The Kite Runner, Forster said he was sworn to secrecy regarding Bond 22 details: ‘You are bound by confidentiality agreements, you can’t say anything.’

‘We’re shooting some of it in Latin America, some in Italy and England,’ he said, but still offered no new information on the casting, stating: ‘There’s no new casting news at this point–except Daniel Craig and Judi Dench.’ In related news, however, Bond fans will want to note that Mathieu Amalric was confirmed as Bond 22‘s villain yesterday.

Summing up the discussion, Forster said that he wasn’t planning on any more radical Bond makeovers, but will be keeping with the style started in last year’s Casino Royale.

‘I think it was already recreated with casting Daniel Craig in the last one and I think I would just like to take that a step further and create another facet to it.’

Remember that Forster appears late tonight/early Friday morning on the PBS show Tavis Smiley. We’ll just have to watch and see if any further Bond 22 news is revealed.

Keep watching CommanderBond.net for all the latest Bond 22 coverage.

Mathieu Amalric Confirmed As 'Bond 22' Villain

Mathieu Amalric confirmed as Bond 22 villain

According to a report from Empire Online, Mathieu Amalric is now confirmed as the villain in Bond 22.

While he wouldn’t reveal a whole lot on his character, Amalric did reveal a few details, stating: ‘I will, it’s true. I play the villain, yes. James Bond. It has to do with childhood, you know? To be a villain in James Bond is just so funny. I never dreamt about that. It’s not what I want to do with my career. It’s just that I have kids and it’s so funny to do that. But it doesn’t mean that I’m not going to do a very small French film for free with my friends.’

Amalric’s name was first brought to the attention of James Bond fans in mid-November when a Fox News’ FOX411 column claimed the French actor had landed the role in next year’s 007 film. That report stated that despite no confirmation from Amalric at the time, ‘that was the word’ at a lunch that week for Le Scaphandre Et Le Papillon (The Diving Bell And The Butterfly), in which the actor stars.

A hot topic among Bond fans is whether or not Amalric will be playing the role of Vesper Lynd’s French-Algerian boyfriend (as originally revealed by Casino Royale‘s Eva Green as the plan and and something that screenwriter Paul Haggis coyly refused to deny).

What do you think? Discuss it here on the CBn Forums.

Keep your eyes on the CommanderBond.net main page. We’ll keep you updated with all the latest news and details on Bond 22.

Panamanian Extras Casting Takes Place

According to a report from Panamanian website PA-DIGITAL.com.pa, extras casting for the twenty-second James Bond film took place in the country today.

Panama’s El Casco Antiguo (Old Quarters)

The report claims the casting session occurred between 9:00am and 7:00pm at Teatro la Quadra. The article also reports El Casco Antiguo (the Old Quarters), la Bahía (the Bay) and Colón (Panama’s second-largest city) are among the shooting locations to be used.

Candidates were reportedly required to dress comfortably and without accessories such as necklaces.

The article also suggests Bond 22 is still without its Bond girl.

Panama was first revealed as a Bond 22 location in September. Dame Judi Dench recently claimed her character would be headed there in Bond 22.

In other Bond 22 news, the film’s director, Marc Forster, told the Huffington Post that he is looking forward to helming the next 007 adventure, particularly coming off the controversial movie, The Kite Runner. “It’s definitely a relief,” said the award-winning director. “It’s more about pop culture. It’s about entertaining. You’re not making an issue movie.”

Keep watching CommanderBond.net for the most up-to-date James Bond news on the Internet.