After Christopher Nolan made it clear that he was interested in doing James Bond earlier this year, it appeared that the Oscar nominee was the front-runner to helm the long-running franchise. According to scooper Daniel Richtman, a new and unexpected candidate has emerged as the top choice to direct James Bond – Matthew Vaughn.
Vaughn has been around for nearly 20 years and directed popular films such as Kick-Ass and The Kingsman. This seems like an Aaron Taylor-Johnson situation, where the most unlikely contender is getting the opportunity to direct one of the biggest franchises in cinema. Though Vaughn has stated that he’s not the next director for Bond, filmmakers lie all the time (I’m looking at you Andrew Garfield) and that could easily be the case here. So, is Matthew Vaughn the right choice for James Bond?
Matthew Vaughn Is No Stranger To Action
As previously mentioned, Matthew Vaughn has directed some of the most popular action films of the past 20 years. In addition to Kick-Ass and The Kingsman, he’s also done X-Men: First Class. The 52-year-old has showcased that he understands how to properly balance action, story, and characterization pretty well. The three movies mentioned aren’t highly regarded just for their action, but each wonderfully captures the spirit of the source material and elevates it.
Vaughn would surely bring a different approach to James Bond. Nolan’s style is more on the dour and dark side. All of Daniel Craig‘s James Bond films had that same tone. It was exciting to hear that the Oscar winner wants to do James Bond. However, Barbara Broccoli is probably looking to veer away from that tone to differentiate itself from Craig’s recent films. Plus, the fact that Nolan wants total creative control over the project probably doesn’t mesh well with Broccoli and the studio.
Matthew Vaughn Has Yet To Prove That He Can Run A Successful Franchise
The Kingsman series was a success overall. Though Kingsman: The Golden Circle received more of a mixed reaction from critics and fans, it still doubled its production budget. The prequel, The King’s Man, was a bomb, unfortunately. The critics weren’t big fans of the film. Though fans seemed to enjoy it more than The Golden Circle. Still, it only made $126 million against a $100 million production budget. The coronavirus pandemic can be partially to blame, but this was also when Spider-Man: No Way Home was making a killing at the box office.
Vaughn dropped off the X-Men franchise following First Class. He also had nothing to do with Kick-Ass 2 as a director. Though he produced the sequel. Vaughn hasn’t proved that he can sustain a high level of quality in a franchise yet. The Bond franchise tends to make four to seven films per actor, with Timothy Dalton, George Lazenby, and Peter Sellers being an exception.
More importantly, Vaughn has never directed a film that’s made over $500 million at the box office. Christopher Nolan is fresh off Oppenheimer, a three-hour R-rated film that’s made over $900 million worldwide. Though Vaughn has proven his skills as a filmmaker, he’s certainly not a name talent like Nolan.
Matthew Vaughn Wouldn’t Be The First Choice
This is no disrespect to Matthew Vaughn as he’s a talented filmmaker. However, running a franchise is vastly different than making a single feature. Financially speaking, he wouldn’t be in my top five to direct a James Bond film since he isn’t a household name like Nolan yet. Hollywood is a business first and foremost, so if Vaughn’s first Bond film tanked financially, there’s a slim chance that a sequel with him on board is made.
Vaughn does have a distinct style that would separate from Daniel Craig’s version of films in a good way. If Barbara Broccoli takes her time planning the next set of films with Vaughn then it wouldn’t be impossible to string out a set of good films. Matthew Vaughn should get a chance to direct one Bond film to see if he properly fits in with the brand. However, if I had to make a choice, then I would continue searching for a new director.
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