Movies - Casino Royale

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	Movies - Casino Royale

Casino Royale, previously known by its working title Bond 21, will be the 21st James Bond film produced by EON Productions. Based on the 1953 novel Casino Royale by Ian Fleming, it will be the first Bond film to take its title from an Ian Fleming novel or short story since 1987's The Living Daylights
and the first to be directly based on any of Fleming's writings since 1989's Licence to Kill
. The film is currently in production and being directed by Martin Campbell, director of the 1995 Bond film, GoldenEye
.

The film has generated considerable media interest due to the fact that EON Productions had not re-signed Pierce Brosnan as agent 007 and had gone over a year without an actor to fill the vacancy. An official announcement was made during a news conference in London on Friday October 14, 2005 announcing Daniel Craig as James Bond, a decision that was seen by some as controversial.

This film marks the third screen-adaptation of Ian Fleming's novel Casino Royale, which was previously a 1954 television episode and a 1967 film spoof; however, the 2006 release will be the only official adaptation of Fleming's novel. This will also be the first official Bond film to be distributed by Columbia Pictures, which ironically had produced and originally distributed the original non-canonical 1967 film version; this is the result of the Sony/Comcast consortium's acquisition of Bond film series rights co-owner United Artists.

The search for the new James Bond

Backed by a flurry of unconfirmed reports from a variety of different sources and mediums, the search for the actor to replace Pierce Brosnan as James Bond was arguably one of the largest and most publicized searches ever in the history of film. Beginning in the autumn of 2004 rumours began surfacing that Pierce Brosnan would not be re-signing with EON Productions to play agent 007 in Casino Royale. Brosnan confirmed this on October 14, 2004, stating "It's absolutely over," and that he considered himself "fired" from the role. A spokesperson for EON Productions issued a statement on April 17, 2005 that it would "definitely not be Pierce Brosnan." Despite this and numerous public denials that he would return, Brosnan was continuously announced in media reports as still being in contention for the role.

Throughout 2004 and 2005, an endless stream of potential new Bonds were rumored and even announced by some media. These names consisted of both unknowns and established Hollywood actors. Some of the popular names mentioned to be in actual consideration by EON Productions, a list at one point claimed by Michael G. Wilson to be over 200 names long are:

Names in bold indicate actors who confirmed that they auditioned for the role.

Of note, Eric Bana, Clive Owen, Hugh Jackman, and even Daniel Craig were at one point confirmed to have been signed or to have been offered the role by various news outlets. More than any other candidate, Clive Owen had been a staying name while the search was continuing. Rumours surrounding Owen intensified in early 2005 after he was awarded a Golden Globe and a BAFTA and nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his 2004 film, Closer.

By July 2005, the list of names was down to a mere 4, popularly known as "the final four", according to the tabloid, The Sunday Mirror. It was claimed that the shortlist had been whittled down to Henry Cavill (22), Alex O'Lachlan (28), Ewan Stewart (47) and Goran Višnjić (32) . The list was premature and by September 2005 during a press junket for The Legend of Zorro
, Martin Campbell claimed the list to have consisted of 8-10 names.

As early as April 2005 rumours began to swirl around Layer Cake
star Daniel Craig. In May, Craig stated that MGM had assured him that he had the job, but that the Broccoli family hadn't approached him. Similarly, the director of Layer Cake, Matthew Vaughn stated that he had been offered the job of directing the film by the studio, but not by the Broccolis . By August 2005, the 37-year-old Daniel Craig was still considered to be in the running and by some insiders, EON Production's preferred choice. On October 11, the Daily Mail confirmed that Daniel Craig had been signed for the role; however, no official confirmation was made until October 14, 2005 during a news conference held by EON Productions and Sony Pictures Entertainment. The conference was held at noon in London at HMS President, a Royal Naval Reserve station at St Katharine Docks, on the banks of the River Thames downstream of Tower Bridge.

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Movies - Casino Royale

The search for the new James Bond

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