Daniel Craig’s tenure as James Bond got off to a phenomenal start with Casino Royale, which still comfortably ranks as both one of 007’s finest outings and an all-timer of a reboot, but things took a drastic downturn when Quantum of Solace was being put together.
Admittedly, the infamous writer’s strike didn’t help, but Marc Foster has revealed in the years since that he was completely overwhelmed at points, which is no surprise when the director of intimate dramas like Monster’s Ball and Finding Neverland was tackling a $200 million behemoth that was being written on the fly, to the extent that production kicked off with the script nowhere near completion.
As the buildup to the long-delayed No Time to Die continues, documentary Being James Bond has been released to trace the journey of cinema’s most famous secret agent up to this point in his illustrious career, and producer Barbara Broccoli didn’t hold back in admitting that they were screwed when Quantum of Solace started filming.
“We basically started shooting without a script, which is never a good idea. But the script was turned in, and I remember the writer who turned the script in picked up his check, and then picked up his placard and stood outside the studio striking. We were kind of screwed, and we all had to muddle in and try and make the story work, and it wasn’t really working that great. But I look back at the movie, and you know, it’s still a good movie.”
Quantum of Solace did manage to earn $589 million at the box office despite tepid reviews, and the franchise bounced back in a huge way with Sam Mendes’ Skyfall, but nobody’s going to deny that Craig’s sophomore outing in the tux was a huge disappointment after the majestic highs of Casino Royale.
