Phoebe Waller-Bridge is reportedly being courted to write James Bond 26, following her efforts as a cowriter on next year's No Time to Die. The news arrives hot on the heels of her multiple Emmy victories - including, Comedy Series, Lead Actress, and Writing - this past Sunday for the second season of Fleabag (the widely-acclaimed show based on her one-woman stage play of the same name).
Waller-Bridge was officially confirmed as a writer on No Time to Die when the then-untitled Bond 25 began production in April. Prior to the announcement, it was reported that she'd been brought aboard at current James Bond actor Daniel Craig's request to "live up" the script and improve the dialogue for the female characters specifically. However, Waller-Bridge apparently ended up doing more work on the screenplay than expected, including punching up the dialogue for the cast in general and refining a number of the action scenes.
According to The Daily Mail, Waller-Bridge is now being eyed to return for Bond 26 as a writer. A source close to the project claims that her contributions to the No Time to Die script were "far greater than we'd anticipated" and went so far as to call her the movie's "savior". As a result, the franchise's overseers (including, producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson) are hoping to bring her back for the next installment.
The No Time to Die pre-production was a noticeably drawn-out and messy process, especially after Danny Boyle stepped down as director and was replaced by Cary Fukunaga (resulting in multiple release date delays and the movie's script being overhauled). The Daily Mail's source claims that Waller-Bridge was essential in getting the project back on track after that, saying "At first, no one knew what was going on. Now everyone’s happy. This is going to be a great Bond". That's all the more welcome news, in light of the fact that Craig intends to call it a day on playing James Bond after this movie (marking his fifth overall performance as the character after his turns in Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, and Spectre).
This news tops off a busy week for Waller-Bridge that, in addition to her Emmy wins, saw her close a $20 million deal to develop content for Amazon Studios and its Amazon Prime Video service. However, that shouldn't prevent her from working on the next James Bond adventure, considering the film won't happen until a few years after No Time to Die (which opens in April 2020). If she were to sign on, Waller-Bridge could help to usher in a new era for the the franchise at large, following Craig's departure. But in the meantime, she and everyone else involved with the film are just focusing on sending the actor's 007 out on a high note.
Source: The Daily Mail
