Steven Spielberg is one of the most celebrated directors in Hollywood, having delivered innumerable blockbusters in his career. He is known for the Jurassic Park films, Jaws, the Indiana Jones franchise, and Schindler’s List, among others, but he also wanted to make a Bond film. Steven Spielberg had always been a fan of the James Bond films and wanted to direct Sean O’Connery as James Bond.
He had even approached Bond producer Albert Broccoli twice, offering to direct a Bond film, but was rejected both times. However, if Steven Speilberg had gotten the chance to direct a Bond film, we might have got something between Dr. No and Raiders of the Lost Ark.
How would a James Bond film directed by Steven Spielberg look like?
Albert Broccoli had reached out to Steven Spielberg after the release of Close Encounters of the Third Kind to ask him for permission to use the five notes the newly released film had introduced. Spielberg had then asked for the second time if he could direct a Bond film, but was again rejected.
Soon after that George Lucas had brought the story of Indians Jones to Spielberg. Speaking on The Rest Is Entertainment podcast, Steven Spielberg revealed,
“That’s when George said, I have something better than Bond. It’s called Indiana Smith, which is what it was called at the time. And he told me the premise of the Indiana Jones series. And that’s how I got that job.”
Thus, Indiana Jones happened for Steven Spielberg after he wasn’t given the chance to direct a Bond film. However, his love for the franchise about the British spy is evident in the first Indiana Jones film, Raiders of the Lost Ark, where Spielberg essentially introduced an American version of James Bond.
If Steven Speilberg had gotten the chance to make a Bond film, it would most likely focus less on spy gadgets (which is one of the things Bond films are known for) and more on actual thrilling adventures. Bond would probably travel the world to look for extremely fragile yet powerful objects before the villains could use them to take over or destroy the world.
The action of the film would feel much more dangerous and exciting. Instead of easily escaping dangerous situations, we would probably see Bond fight it out in villain lairs to make it out alive. Visually, the film would most likely look beautiful like a classic. This is because in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana wore a white tuxedo with a red flower. This was a direct nod to Sean Connery’s style in Goldfinger.
A Steven Spielberg Bond film would probably have a lot of scenes that would feature tense meetings in fancy clubs, the anticipation around poisoned drinks, and close escapes from said clubs. Finally, the film would feature Sean Connery at his best, but not working alone. Instead of making Bond a lonely hero, Spielberg would most likely have given him a partner. The two would probably have witty banter amongst themselves but respect each other’s skills and work as a team.
Steven Spielberg’s version of Bond, if it were made, would be the perfect blend of spy style, action thriller, and adventure that keeps you on your toes. It’s too bad that we will never get to see a Bond film directed by Spielberg because as he said on The Rest Is Entertainment podcast,
“… if they ever asked me to make a Bond film now, my answer would be: you can’t afford me.”
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Edited by Riddhee