Danny Boyle reportedly felt that efforts to keep Daniel Craig happy put an unreasonable constraint on his influence over ‘Bond 25’.
The acclaimed director walked away from the much-discussed project earlier this week, and it’s now been claimed that Boyle quickly grew tired of having to compromise his own ambitions for the movie.
Following repeated clashes with producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson, Boyle felt he had no alternative other than to walk away from ‘Bond 25’, The Sun newspaper reports.
Craig has played a huge part in the recent success of the franchise and he’s gained an increasing influence over the series through the years, having been handed a co-producer credit on ‘Spectre’.
However, the project has been thrown into crisis after Boyle decided to quit, with the producers now frantically searching for a replacement.
It now appears likely that the as-yet-untitled movie will face a significant delay as a new director is found.
Craig previously threatened to walk away from the franchise following ‘Spectre’, but he’s apparently been handed an unprecedented level of influence over the new film as a means of convincing him to return as the British spy.
A source told The Sun newspaper: "It’s extraordinary how much power Daniel has on those films – way more than an actor in almost any other franchise. It’s as if he thinks he’s bigger than Bond.
"Barbara and Michael have made it totally clear that they would do almost anything to get Daniel back, even after he told the world he was sick of it, but that has given the impression he’s calling all the shots."
A John Hodge-written script for ‘Bond 25’ is said to have been one of the major issues concerning some of the film’s key figures, including Broccoli, Wilson and Craig.
The script – which focused on topical issues to help the franchise move with the times – prompted fears the series was moving away from its traditions.
Danny Boyle ‘walked away from Bond 25 over power clashes’
