Here’s our Special mid-November 2020 edition of Spy Movie News with more No Time to Die stunts, NOW, NO Time to Stream, Red Notice, Tribute to Sean Connery as he passes, And Mission: Impossible . . .a real James Bond? And . . .more!  This article is an adaptation from our podcast.  If you would rather listen to this than read it, please click here to go to the podcast page for the Mid-November Spy Movie News.

JAMES BOND

SEAN CONNERY

First,  as we know, Sean Connery passed away October 31 2020 as the age of 90.   Sir Sean Connery was a terrific actor who defined the role, character and persona of James Bond in the movies.   He was terrific on other movies as well, like The Untouchables,  The Hunt for Red October, Entrapment, Finding Forester, The Man Who Would Be King and so many more.   We at SpyMovieNavigator.com and our show, Cracking the Code of Spy Movies, join the world community in sadness at the loss of a great one.  Sir Sean Connery, Rest in Peace.    His wife reports his ashes will be spread over the Bahamas and Scotland.    We put a Sir Sean Connery Tribute podcast out as a tribute to him. 

NO TIME TO DIE 

No Time To Stream?

Just when some were getting excited at the end of October about No Time To Die possibly in a streaming deal with maybe Apple TV or Netflix, a Deadline.com article, entitled James Bond No Time To Doe Streamer Deal Died Quickly says  nope – not happening.   In the article they claim that streamers were only willing to put up about half for what was being asked for, also saying that Deadline.Com hear that Barbara Broccoli nixed the deal.  Our Opinion: after all, No Time To Die box office sales were being projected to be in the ballpark of Skyfall – that means, in the billion-dollar range.   So, maybe MGM, Eon and Universal are willing to wait this one out a little longer.   But April 2021, given what is happening now worldwide with the pandemic, might still be a stretch.   That’s what we think.  Maybe another delay?   Who knows!  Things are changing every week on this stuff, so stay tuned!  You can read the full article on the deadline.com website at this link.

What Could You Do With 8,400 Gallons of Coca Cola?

 Well, the James Bond No Time To Die filming crew figured out a good use for it!!  In an article at SlashFilm.com, entitled, “‘No Time to Die’ Motorcycle Stunt Sprayed Street with 8,400 Gallons of Coca-Cola, Presumably Shaken, Not Stirred” the motorcycle stunt where “Bond” is leaping up a ramp onto a cobblestoned street in the scene in question – landing a motorcycle on slick cobblestone can be tricky – so, make it sticky instead of tricky – yeah – they sprayed the street with 8,400 gallons of Coca-Cola to pull off this stunt.     Supposedly this was while in Matera, Italy.  The article quotes sources from Total Film Magazine and IndieWire.   Our opinion:  Come on, the Bond guys, particularly Lee Morrison the stunt coordinator, have pulled off a Mission: Impossible- like stunt!  Well, pretty original actually!   Go, Bond!  You can read the full article here.

Rami's Remarks

In a GQ-Magazine.co.uk article, November 2020, Rami Malek is quoted as saying: “No matter what you expect from Bond, you will be shocked”    In a suite at The London Hotel in Hollywood, Rami Malek has been writing some behind-the-scenes commentaries for the long-awaited Bond film,  No Time To Die.  Rami says he thinks the rumors of a Dr. No reincarnation are interesting, but, he quips, “I’m not going to bite on that.”   “because no matter what you expect from this movie, you will be shocked when you watch the film. I will not add any fuel to that fire.”  Read the great article all about Rami Malek here at GQ-Magazine.co.uk.

Will No Time to Die see James Bond Really retire? 

Well, there has been tons of speculation for over a year now on this subject.   And reportedly, Lashana Lynch has said she is 007 in the film.   Well, take a look at an interesting article at Express.co.uk entitled:  “James Bond: Will James Bond actually retire after No Time to Die? 'Flirted with it before'”  By Jenny Desborough. It's an interesting read, saying Lashana is the new 007 character, and speculating on what will happen to James Bond.  In the article it is James Bond expert Dr. Ian Kinane doing the speculating.  Check out the article here!     Our opinion: in No Time To Die – we have no idea what will happen.   Will Bond really return and hang it up?  Will he die?  Will he return to service as a new numbered agent, or return as 007?  It’s fun to speculate – we obviously have time! 

Nomi, Played by Lashana Lynch, Will Take On A Major Role 

In a ScreenRant.com article by Craig Elvy, entitled, “Why James Bond's New 007 Is No Time To Die's Most Important Character” they talk a lot about the power of women now in the film and about how Nomi takes on a lot of the characteristics of our traditional 007 agent, James Bond, from quips, to efficiency to driving an Aston Martin.   It's a nice read – check it out here at ScreenRant.com.  

Tomorrow Never Dies  

We're sad to report that Geoffrey Palmer, who played Admiral Roebuck in Tomorrow Never Dies has passed away at age 93.  See this FoxNews.com article for all the details.     

A REAL JAMES BOND?? 

The Wall Street Journal, in an October 22, 2020 article suggests that recently declassified documents reveal a possible spy in Poland named . . . James Bond!  In Warsaw, Poland, an archivist uncovered a file from the Cold War about a British diplomat who arrived in Poland in 1964, then vanished.   The papers suggest his name: James Albert Bond.   See the WSJ.com article for more details.   You can also find an article on this if you don’t have a Wall Street Journal subscription here at the FirstNews.com.  

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE  7 . . . or 8 

Angela Basset Returns 

Angela Bassett, as reported by CinemaBlend.com, discloses that she will return to Mission: Impossible reprising her role of Erica Sloane in Mission: Impossible: Fallout.   But – it is not known yet whether she will be in Mission: Impossible 7 or 8!  Check out this Cinemablend.com article for more details.  DigitalSpy.com also has a similar story here.

More Derring-do for Tom Cruise

It’s reported through videos that have surfaced, that MI7 is focusing on action sequences at the moment, with Cruise as Ethan Hunt jumping off mountains and riding on top of trains – nothing new there for Cruise, huh?  Ha! 

Mission: Impossible 7 Ready to Wrap Filming?

Also, at DailyMail.co.uk in a November 12th article it is reported that Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg and Rebecca Ferguson are filming FINAL scenes for Mission: Impossible 7 in Venice's San Marco Square.      Venice is gorgeous – I've been there twice  - but remember Venice is where they were filming when the pandemic started and they had to leave Venice before completing filming there.  We have to give this team props: in October,  12 people on set reportedly tested positive for the Covid disease.    Our opinion: We really don’t know how they are doing this on location in so many places as the pandemic is still raging.   Stay safe!  Check out this DailyMail.co.uk article for the details.

RED NOTICE

Red Notice Wraps Filming!

SlashFilm.com reports that Netflix has released photos of the heist film, Red Notice and reports some good news that Red Notice has completed filming!   Of course, they were shut down like all others back in March.  So, some good news on this front!  Here's the Slash.com article for the details.  

THEATER NEWS

More Theaters in Trouble as AMC Makes Announcement 

CNBC.COM published this article on 10/22/2020 on AMC Entertainment.  The article, entitled: "AMC warns bankruptcy is on the table as cash runs low " The article says that  “AMC continued to warn investors about its dwindling cash pile and said it may have to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy if it is unable to secure additional sources of liquidity.”  AMC, the article claims is the largest theater chain in the world.   This is tough news.    They also say that “Chapter 11 bankruptcy would likely allow AMC to stay in business while it reworks its debts and sorts out new lines of liquidity.”  We say, let’s all hope  for the best to a solution to this worldwide pandemic crisis.  It is far-reaching affecting millions of lives.     Yet, at CNBC.com it has also been reported that Regal theaters, who just closed 500 theaters about 2 weeks ago, plans on re-opening 11 of them in New York state in the US.  The governor of New York is allowing some theaters outside of New York City to reopen at limited capacity.   See this article on CNBC.com for all the details. 

Cineplex Reached a Deal With Universal Pictures

This article on SeekingAlpha.com discusses a deal that Canada-based Cineplex has made with Universal Pictures.  This deal is similar to the two other deals Universal has made with AMC and Cinemark.  It essentially shortens the release windows for new releases to 17 days.  This means that a new movie can hit video-on-demand 17 days after it releases in the theaters.  There used to be a 75-90 day window for this.  Titles opening opening at $50 million have to wait 31 days to hit video-on-demand.

FBI RELEASES A SPY FILM!

Ok, this is a for real spy film!  The US FBI released a film in September  called, “The Nevernight Connection,” and tells a fictional story, but based on reality of a former U.S. intelligence official who turned and went  to spy for the Chinese, who recruited him through fake profiles on a professional networking site.   It highlights recent attempts also by Russia, China and Iran regarding attempts to affect US national elections.     It’s a 30 minute film, free, and on the FBI website at FBI.gov. Here's a link to it on their site. Check out Bloomberg.com for more this one!     That wraps up our Spy Movie News for November 2020 and our focus on No Time To Die and James Bond, Mission: Impossible, Red Notice, and some industry news!  Follow us on Facebook, Twitter (@SpyNavigator) and InstaGram too!  Subscribe right now to our Cracking the Code of Spy Movies show on your favorite podcast app!