Never Say Never Again- Again?

[Ace]

When I decided to divide film news and articles from actual discussion of the films I was going to segment the news into a subcategory but then I saw there was 95% discussion of Bond articles and rumors and it was easier to separate actual film discussion of which there is very little.

But there's always more "News", no matter how pie in the sky, sketchy or seemingly . Case in point:

From Moviehole: Still Bonding Part II

6/26/06

I heard from a comrade at Sony, that Kevin McClory might be – but admittedly, when hasn’t he been? – interested in doing a second remake of “Thunderball”. You’ll remember that McClory has the remake rights to that film, and that film only, and has already redone it once – as 1982’s “Never say Never Again”. What’s amusing is that my Sony contact - I can tell you that he’s an executive producer on something out soon - tells me that all the folks that were ‘runners up’ for “Casino Royale” – a.k.a ‘the official Bond’ film – are being considered for the role of James Bond in the new “Thunderball”. They include everyone from to Dougray Scott to Joel Edgerton and …… Pierce Brosnan. Yep, apparently there’s some serious talk that the opposing crowd might – like they did with Sean Connery – be trying to sway Brosnan into doing another Bond movie. That would be a real kick in the teeth for EON, wouldn’t it?


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And from a different site and source

Cinescape: Another Pierce Brosnan BOND film?

ateline: Tuesday, June 27, 2006

By: KARL SCHNEIDER
By: News Editor
Source: BBC

Michael wrote me with some interesting news regarding BOND and Pierce Brosnan:

Hey Guys,

Greetings from Northern Lincolnshire.

Something interest this morning on Carl & Gloria (BBC). They mentioned that they've been trying to get a peekaboo onto the sets of "Casino Royale" - and said they'll probably have more luck getting in on the rival Bond film that they're going to make. He then proceeded to tell her that Kevin McClory is trying to make "Thunderball" for a third time - it is the only film he owns, apparently - and that the word is, Pierce Brosnan is going to be in it! That would be a smack in the mouth for "Casino Royale", I'd think?

Michael.

Thanks Michael for the heads up.

[Barbara]

Oh baby! If that could get pulled off...it would be sweet!

But alas my friends, I am very certain that after the results of a lawsuit at the turn of this century, Kevin McClory is in hiding to avoid paying a huge legal settlement to Sony, for some other stunt he pulled with them years ago.

Pie in Sky as it is, NSNA was not as good as TB, period end of debate. If someone could clean up some of the lesser aspects of NSNA, then it would be OK.

I however am curious to see what the so far silent Ian Fleming Publications has to say about CR and the bruhaha. Nota Bene, the success of the novels is heavily tied to the films, and if this CR blows it for them, they might be annoyed enough to release unseen (to this point) notes and story sketches that Fleming did around the time he was working with McClory, this giving McClory the right to say they were his as well as Fleming's. If that is the case, McClory and someone else could develop a whole new movie out of that material.

-- Barbara

[Ace]

I never heard that McCorly owed Sony. I was under the impression that Sony pulled the rug out from under McClory so they could make the Casino Royale swap for Superman Rights with MGM/EON.

McClory's problem it seems to me is that he never had enough studio backing to get his film off the ground because of threats of more lawsuits and studios thinking there wasn't enough interest in a non EON Bond. With Pierce he'd have the interest and the clouts. But why would Pierce be interested unless he got a top of the line A list director like Tarantino, Ridley Scott and top list writer to do the project? I think TB the book is easily the most cinematic of the novels and if they did a more faithful version of it it could be great and then it would also be slightly different from the two films.

As for IFF releasing notes like that never. It would mean McClory would own character rights and then he could start writing books or hiring writers to make books as well as films.

[Barbara]

The whole thing with Sony and McClory was tied to Superman, but in the middle of this, McClory told Sony he did have the rights free and clear to Thunderball, and the characters therein. Of course, McClory was lying, and when Sony found out they went after him.

But, if Sony decides it needs to hedge its bets on CR, and they renew a discussion with McClory, whose to say that Brosnan won't get Tarrantino to help him. I think Tarrantino would have fun with the female characters in TB, not to mention that "Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" is his type of song, for a movie soundtrack.

The IFF has to acknowledge McClory to a certain extent, albeit that he exists and helped write the screen version of TB in some way; that's how NSNA got made in the first place. I think the IFF would rather acknowledge McClory in a limited extent, get a movie made that keeps James Bond popular, than see the entire franchise implode if CR bombs.

And yes, :sarcasm on: to all the lofters and other readers, I acknowledge that CR may not bomb. It may do well, despite the best efforts of Eon productions. :sarcasm off:

-- Barbara

[eaz35173]

Found a clip of an interview from back in 1998 with Pierce talking about this subject ...