Sam Mendes Says He's Finished With James Bond Movies

Sam Mendes, the director behing Skyfall and SPECTRE, says he's finished with the James Bond [...]

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Sam Mendes, the director behing Skyfall and SPECTRE, says he's finished with the James Bond franchise.

Amid weeks of rumors that star Daniel Craig is leaving Bond behind, Mendes made it official when talking at the Hay Festival of Literature in Wales.

"It was an incredible adventure, I loved every second of it," Mendes is quoted by the Associated Press as saying. "But I think it's time for somebody else."

"I'm a storyteller. And at the end of the day, I want to make stories with new characters," he added.

While it isn't yet official that Daniel Craig will leave the franchise, it seemed like a fait accompli as early as the SPECTRE press tour that both he and Mendes were effectively finished. Recently, names like Tom Hiddleston and Jamie Bell have been mentioned in conjunction with the role, while vocal fans on social media have hoped to nudge producer Barbara Broccoli toward a non-traditional candidate (read: somebody who isn't necessarily white and/or male). Rumors that Craig turned down a fantastic payday to return for more Bond have been stonewalled by the studio.

Prior to his work on Bond, Mendes was best known for his Academy Award-winning film American Beauty. Skyfall turned out to be the highest-grossing Bond movie of all time, and one of the best-reviewed. When SPECTRE came around, it was well-received, but had neither the reviews nor the box office might to stack up to its predecessor. Meanwhile, Craig was making cryptic comments about how he'd sooner die than return to the role.

The next Bond movie has no director, star, or release date at this point.

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