Anthony Horowitz has said he would never pen a James Bond script because you need a thick skin to handle big-budget film producers.
The 70-year-old author and screenwriter, who’s best known for the Alex Rider book series, said he’s never been asked to write a Bond script but thinks he’s “probably happier out of it”.
Horowitz added that he thought it was a mistake for Bond writers to have killed off 007 at the end of the 2021 film No Time to Die.
“The last time we saw Bond he was poisoned and blown to smithereens – how will they get past the fact he is dead with a capital D?” he asked during a Radio Times interview.
Horowitz continued: “I think that was a mistake, because Bond is a legend. He belongs to everybody, he is eternal – except in that film.
“If I was asked tomorrow to write the script, I wouldn’t be able to do it. Where would you start? You can’t have him waking up in the shower and saying it was all a dream.”
The new Bond film won’t follow on from No Time to Die, instead serving as a relaunch of the 007 series with a new actor in the lead role.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, 35, has long been the rumoured frontrunner to replace Daniel Craig. However, lesser-known star Rose-Marsh (Wolves of War) reportedly auditioned for the role last month.
The new film will be directed by Denis Villeneuve and written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight, who said he hoped the new movie will be “better, stronger, and bolder” than those that preceded it.
The next Bond film will be the first after the franchise changed hands with Amazon MGM taking full creative control by striking a deal with long-time stewards Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli. It will be overseen by producers Amy Pascal and David Heyman.
When he was confirmed as the film’s director, Villeneuve said: “Some of my earliest moviegoing memories are connected to 007. I grew up watching James Bond films with my father, ever since Dr No with Sean Connery. I’m a die-hard Bond fan. To me, he’s sacred territory.”
The film is not expected to be released until 2028.
