MOVIE NEWS – The Return of Classic Bond Villain? It may be someone from an original Ian Fleming novel…

Again, the working title for James Bond 25 has been revealed. Indeed, this isn’t the first time this same working title has surfaced. As the fans of the franchise are probably aware, this movie had some serious problems and has been delayed several times already. That meant an awful lot of rumours arising after Spectre was released in 2015 and this working title reveal has brought one of the most intriguing ones back to the surface.

According to a brand new production listing, James Bond 25 be will shoot using the working title of “Shatterhand”. That does not mean that the film will be out hit in the theatres under that title, only that production will commence using that name. This very same working title came up in 2017 before a director was even attached, and before Daniel Craig officially announced he actually returned for one last go as 007. But it’s what the working title of Shatterhand was attached to at that time that is particularly interesting.

At that time, it was rumoured that the film would be based on the 2001 novel Never Dream of Dying by author Raymond Benson, which was a book which sees Bond squaring off against a blind villain. Still, Benson himself denied those rumours shortly after they surfaced, but it remains an interesting thought. And, considering that director Cary Fukunaga, who boarded the project after Danny Boyle departed, is having the current script overhauled by Scott Z. Burns (The Bourne Ultimatum), who knows what we could end up seeing? And let’s not forget either, that Bohemian Rhapsody star: Rami Malek is being eyed as the main villain. Just imagine Malek playing a blind foe to Craig’s Bond.

That, for now, is just an old rumour, but while we wait for actual story details, it’s fun to ponder. Concerning Shatterhand, that title does actually connect to the real James Bond universe. The name comes specifically from Ian Fleming’s novel You Only Live Twice, and not so much the movie. In the book, Bond is sent to assassinate a man by the name of Dr. Guntram Shatterhand by the Japanese Secret Service, and he will later realize that this man is actually his arch-nemesis, Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

Christoph Waltz portrayed Blofeld in Spectre and he made it out alive. Cary Fukunaga previously expressed his desire to see Waltz return and, given this working title, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Blofeld back for what will ultimately be Daniel Craig’s final turn as the iconic MI6 spy. Filming is expected to begin in April at Pinewood Studios in London. After having its release date delayed again recently, James Bond 25 is now set to hit theatres on April 8, 2020. We’ll be sure to keep you posted as further details on the project are made available.

Source: Production Weekly