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BOND SCRIPTS

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  • DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
    edited May 2020 Posts: 18,282
    Chriskarr wrote: »
    moneyofpropre2 wrote: »
    MI6Agent wrote: »
    If I get a chance to look at those two, I will be sure to take extensive notes.

    Don't forget to take extensive notes on the Jinx's movie one.

    And a rare John Cork outline draft screenplay

    Box 18, Folder 18 Outline

    Box 19, Folder 28 Treatment

    I don't think I was aware before that John Cork had ever written a draft screenplay for a James Bond film. That's certainly news to me!
  • MI6AgentMI6Agent
    Posts: 21
    Does anybody have the third draft of GoldenEye (1-7-1995) or the second polish (12-22-1994 through 1-24-1995)? Thanks in advance!
  • Escalus5Escalus5
    edited May 2020 Posts: 628
    Dragonpol wrote: »
    Chriskarr wrote: »
    moneyofpropre2 wrote: »
    MI6Agent wrote: »
    If I get a chance to look at those two, I will be sure to take extensive notes.

    Don't forget to take extensive notes on the Jinx's movie one.

    And a rare John Cork outline draft screenplay

    Box 18, Folder 18 Outline

    Box 19, Folder 28 Treatment

    I don't think I was aware before that John Cork had ever written a draft screenplay for a James Bond film.

    He didn't. He wrote a story treatment.

    As explained by Cork in Some Kind of Hero (by Field & Chowdhury):

    I was hired to write a treatment for a "future" Bond film... When I went in for my first meeting, they told me they hired me because they liked my vision for Bond, but that my story idea was too close to the idea that they were developing with [Michael] France, which also had to do with satellites. Thus began the long journey into pitching Bond stories. I must have pitched twenty to thirty. Each one required oodles of research and mapping out characters. None of them went anywhere!

    Both Cork and Richard Smith were hired in 1993 to come up with stories for sequels to Bond 17/GOLDENEYE (since Michael France was already working on that). The Smith treatment -- which seems to have gotten farther than Cork's and was later used to supply minor elements of the Brosnan films -- was examined in an issue of MI6 Confidential and discussed in another thread here.
  • Herr_StockmannHerr_Stockmann
    edited May 2020 Posts: 910
    Revelator wrote: »
    Anyway, the Spectre version of Octopussy sounds like a fascinating what-if? and would have been a gutsy, radical change in direction for the series. I wonder if it was written before Bernard Lee's death and intended as his farewell to the role.
    Of all the proposals to bring back SPECTRE during Moore's tenure, I think this is the one that has always seduced me, appearing on paper as a legitimate follow-up to the down to earth FYEO. Regarding temporality, I suppose it was after Lee's death as the first known writer to work on the movie is George MacDonald Fraser who apparently delivered his draft shortly after the release of FYEO. Thus, I suppose he's the one behind this draft.

    One of my interrogations about this story is how M would have been killed by SPECTRE. Would that have been off-screen, and exposed with dialogues, or shot with a body double in the role, posing for M. I guess no full summary of this draft has ever leaked and thus this question couldn't be answer, but I would really love to know more.
  • Agent_OneAgent_One Ireland
    edited May 2020 Posts: 280
    Herr_Stockmann wrote: »
    Revelator wrote: »
    Anyway, the Spectre version of Octopussy sounds like a fascinating what-if? and would have been a gutsy, radical change in direction for the series. I wonder if it was written before Bernard Lee's death and intended as his farewell to the role.
    Of all the proposals to bring back SPECTRE during Moore's tenure, I think this is the one that has always seduced me, appearing on paper as a legitimate follow-up to the down to earth FYEO. Regarding temporality, I suppose it was after Lee's death as the first known writer to work on the movie is George MacDonald Fraser who apparently delivered his draft shortly after the release of FYEO. Thus, I suppose he's the one behind this draft.

    One of my interrogations about this story is how M would have been killed by SPECTRE. Would that have been off-screen, and exposed with dialogues, or shot with a body double in the role, posing for M. I guess no full summary of this draft has ever leaked and thus this question couldn't be answer, but I would really love to know more.
    Maybe they would've just had him killed during the holiday he was on in FYEO? Opening OP with his funeral might've been used as a substitute.
  • Herr_StockmannHerr_Stockmann
    edited May 2020 Posts: 910
    Agent_One wrote: »
    Maybe they would've just had him killed during the holiday he was on in FYEO? Opening OP with his funeral might've been used as a substitute.
    Even if less spectacular or exciting, that does seem to me to be an option that could be favored at the time, so you may be right.

    Beyond the problem posed by the death of Lee which would therefore have required the presence of a body double, I can't imagine the Bond movies of that period killing on screen such character. Also, since opening the story with a funeral was something that Eon was toying with at that time (an early draft of FYEO opened with 006's funeral for example), it could have happened.
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    edited May 2020 Posts: 5,970
    Didn't this draft also have Dexter Smythe be a member of SPECTRE??
  • Agent_OneAgent_One Ireland
    edited May 2020 Posts: 280
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Didn't this draft also have Dexter Smythe be a member of SPECTRE??
    Yeah, he was Blofeld's second in command. Khan was actually on Bond's side in that draft.
  • Herr_StockmannHerr_Stockmann
    Posts: 910
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Didn't this draft also have Dexter Smythe be a member of SPECTRE??

    That's the first time I hear something so specific about this draft. It would still be something rather strange since, from what the Taschen book tells us, SPECTRE would have been in a war against Octopussy and her group, unless Smythe is not Octopussy's father in this version, or a former member of SPECTRE. Unless all this is a confusion born from the 2015 movie.
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    edited May 2020 Posts: 5,970
    Agent_One wrote: »
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Didn't this draft also have Dexter Smythe be a member of SPECTRE??
    Yeah, he was Blofeld's second in command. Khan was actually on Bond's side in that draft.
    This is definitely something I would've been interested in exploring. especially if they kept Smythe's involvement with Oberhauser, but I don't know if the series would've ever gone down that route back then.
  • Agent_OneAgent_One Ireland
    edited May 2020 Posts: 280
    Herr_Stockmann wrote: »
    Denbigh wrote: »
    Didn't this draft also have Dexter Smythe be a member of SPECTRE??

    That's the first time I hear something so specific about this draft. It would still be something rather strange since, from what the Taschen book tells us, SPECTRE would have been in a war against Octopussy and her group, unless Smythe is not Octopussy's father in this version, or a former member of SPECTRE. Unless all this is a confusion born from the 2015 movie.
    I've definitely seen an extract on these forums that describes Smythe as Blofeld’s "General".

    Edit: found it.
    Blofeld returns as the primary antagonist, locked in a war with a group of bullion smugglers who carry out low level espionage work, and are led by Octopussy. Blofeld plans to remove M from control of MI6 and replace him with his mole Villiers, M's chief of staff, which would allow him to manipulate the West's secret services. M is assassinated, thus leading to Moneypenny's being fired and replaced, and Bond is framed as a double agent. On the run and eager to clear his name, Bond works with Octopussy and Kamal Khan, an old school friend of Bond's working with the Afghan resistance, to defeat Blofeld and his army chief, Smythe.
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    edited May 2020 Posts: 5,970
    I imagine Smythe and Octopussy would've been separate. In the short story, Octopussy was just Smythe's pet (an actual octopus) so I think they just borrowed names.
  • Herr_StockmannHerr_Stockmann
    Posts: 910
    Agent_One wrote: »
    I've definitely seen an extract on these forums that describes Smythe as Blofeld’s "General".

    Indeed, my mistake! Given the lack of reference between these characters in this summary, I suppose Smythe wouldn't have been Octopussy's father. But, if it was the case, it would have created an interesting dynamic.
  • Agent_OneAgent_One Ireland
    edited May 2020 Posts: 280
    Another interesting thing to note here is that M's Chief of Staff/Blofeld's mole is called Villiers, which is the actor who played Tanner in FYEO's second name. And in the early drafts of Spectre, Tanner there was also supposed to be a mole!
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    Posts: 5,970
    Agent_One wrote: »
    Another interesting thing to note here is that M's Chief of Staff/Blofeld's mole is called Villiers, which is the actor who played Tanner in FYEO's second name. And in the early drafts of Spectre, Tanner there was also supposed to be a mole!
    And the name Villiers was used for the M's assistant in Casino Royale.
  • Agent_OneAgent_One Ireland
    edited May 2020 Posts: 280
    True. Didn't they want to bring him back for QOS as well?
  • Escalus5Escalus5
    Posts: 628
    Agent_One wrote: »
    Another interesting thing to note here is that M's Chief of Staff/Blofeld's mole is called Villiers, which is the actor who played Tanner in FYEO's second name. And in the early drafts of Spectre, Tanner there was also supposed to be a mole!
    James Villiers also appeared in a 1977 TV film called SPECTRE.

  • Herr_StockmannHerr_Stockmann
    Posts: 910
    Since Moore wasn't set to return at the time when the SPECTRE draft was on the table, it is interesting to think that this rather dramatic narrative in terms of stakes would have been the vehicle for a new actor in the role, who would have made his debut against Blofeld. I guess Dalton could have been interested in such a treatment. In any case, I really hope that we can learn more one day about this story, or that we can read the entire script.
  • Agent_OneAgent_One Ireland
    edited May 2020 Posts: 280
    Herr_Stockmann wrote: »
    Since Moore wasn't set to return at the time when the SPECTRE draft was on the table, it is interesting to think that this rather dramatic narrative in terms of stakes would have been the vehicle for a new actor in the role, who would have made his debut against Blofeld. I guess Dalton could have been interested in such a treatment. In any case, I really hope that we can learn more one day about this story, or that we can read the entire script.
    I don't know, I think this could've been an excellent final entry for Moore. Bernard Lee's M assassinated, Lois Maxwell's Moneypenny fired, and Bond finally destroying the organisation that's he's been fighting for 20 years. An older, experienced Roger could've done very well in this.
  • PDJamesBondPDJamesBond
    Posts: 669
    This is all fascinating stuff, guys. I absolutely love reading about the different drafts of various scripts, the people who worked on them, the stories/characters/setpieces that were almost included. It's like a parallel universe of entirely different Bond films!
  • Herr_StockmannHerr_Stockmann
    Posts: 910
    Agent_One wrote: »
    An older, experienced Roger could've done very well in this.
    I'm not sure Moore would have been very comfortable with such story. He expressed reservations about Bond's coldness in FYEO and I can't imagine the character being particularly joyful after M's assassination and Moneypenny's dismissal.

    I'm sure he would have been convincing and good in general, but I don't think he would have liked to play such part. On paper it could indeed be the perfect conclusion for Moore with a final showdown with Blofeld, but I don't think Eon would have been able to convince him to come back for such a script.
  • Agent_OneAgent_One Ireland
    edited May 2020 Posts: 280
    Herr_Stockmann wrote: »
    Agent_One wrote: »
    An older, experienced Roger could've done very well in this.
    I'm not sure Moore would have been very comfortable with such story. He expressed reservations about Bond's coldness in FYEO and I can't imagine the character being particularly joyful after M's assassination and Moneypenny's dismissal.

    I'm sure he would have been convincing and good in general, but I don't think he would have liked to play such part. On paper it could indeed be the perfect conclusion for Moore with a final showdown with Blofeld, but I don't think Eon would have been able to convince him to come back for such a script.
    I just don't think it would work with a new Bond. The impact of Moore, Lee (posthumously) and Maxwell doing the story would be irrepliable with Dalton, Brown and Bliss because the connection wouldn't be there.
  • Herr_StockmannHerr_Stockmann
    edited June 2020 Posts: 910
    Mallory wrote: »
    The James Bond Archive elaborates on Purvis & Wade's original QoS Script:

    "The script featured a complex and emotionally powerful plot with Bond going in search of Vesper's Boyfriend. Bond then finds himself embroiled in a multilayered charade involving stolen antiquities, arms dealing, precious metals, nerve gas, the CIA, and a mysterious organisation similar to SPECTRE."

    By now, I suppose a number of you know this, but it is something that I recently discovered when I finally read Field and Chowdhury's Some Kind of Hero that details this early script. Among the elements relating to the series in general, Moneypenny would have been reintroduced and M was set to die in some of these drafts. Among these two elements, I find the first one quite fascinating and I have no trouble imagining Moneypenny's role becoming that of Tanner through the rewrites.

    Regarding the story in itself, Bond would have infiltrated the organization and would have taken the place of a hitman who would have murdered Mr. White at the start of the film; his target would have been a woman smuggling antiquities in Iraq and Libya. The main antagonist would have been named Dante. Because Fleming’s title came lately in the creative process and when Haggins was working on the script, the film was titled Sleep of the Dead, I wonder if the organization was already called Quantum or if this name came later.
  • PropertyOfALadyPropertyOfALady Colders Federation CEO
    Posts: 3,675
    Herr_Stockmann wrote: »
    Mallory wrote: »
    The James Bond Archive elaborates on Purvis & Wade's original QoS Script:

    "The script featured a complex and emotionally powerful plot with Bond going in search of Vesper's Boyfriend. Bond then finds himself embroiled in a multilayered charade involving stolen antiquities, arms dealing, precious metals, nerve gas, the CIA, and a mysterious organisation similar to SPECTRE."

    By now, I suppose a number of you know this, but it is something that I recently discovered when I finally read Field and Chowdhury's Some Kind of Hero that details this early script. Among the elements relating to the series in general, Moneypenny would have been reintroduced and M was set to die in some of these drafts. Among these two elements, I find the first one quite fascinating and I have no trouble imagining Moneypenny's role becoming that of Tanner through the rewrites.

    Regarding the story in itself, Bond would have infiltrated the organization and would have taken the place of a hitman who would have murdered Mr. White at the start of the film; his target would have been a woman smuggling antiquities in Iraq and Libya. The main antagonist would have been named Dante. Because Fleming’s title came lately in the creative process and when Haggins was working on the script, the film was titled Sleep of the Dead, I wonder if the organization was already called Quantum or if this name came later.

    This is interesting. How do you know this?
  • Herr_StockmannHerr_Stockmann
    Posts: 910
    PropertyOfALady wrote: »
    This is interesting. How do you know this?
    Just by reading the chapter dedicated to QoS in Some Kind of Hero by Matthew Field and Ajay Chowdhury!
  • Pierce2DanielPierce2Daniel
    edited July 2020 Posts: 4,409
    Herr_Stockmann wrote: »
    PropertyOfALady wrote: »
    This is interesting. How do you know this?
    Just by reading the chapter dedicated to QoS in Some Kind of Hero by Matthew Field and Ajay Chowdhury!

    I recall reading in that book a while ago that:
    • The films starts in the same way with Mr White in the boot of the car.
    • MI6 have prepared for Mr White to be handed over to the CIA. However, Bond allows Mr White to escape. At this stage, Mr White is unaware that Bond let him escape. Bond does this to allow him the chance to follow Mr White
    • Bond finds out that Mr White will be attending the Palio in Siena. We find out that horeracing is a passion of Mr White's and the reason he is in attendance is to get some peace knowing his organisation are coming to kill him.
    • Bond watches the assassination and chases the hitman. The chase scene in the film was seemingly unchanged from the P&W script.
    • The film pretty much is the same with M being mad and them tracing the money from CR to Quantum.
    • They find the money is at OPEC.
    • Bond poses as an assassin and heads to the target: a woman working in Libya trading stolen antiques that have been taken from Iraq.
    • Bond was meant to go rogue and get hunted by both the CIA and MI6! There was a scene where Bond finds out that Yusef was a traitor. Bond was meant to torture Yusef for a long period to get revenge and get revenge! It was inspired by the 1960's film Point Blank.

    Mr-White-Quantum-of-Solace-3.jpg?ssl=1

    An interesting note about SF from the book:
    • Originally, the third act was set on a Barcelona subway train. Silva's plan was to isolate M and force her into a safe house where he would kill her.
    • However, P&W never liked that. Instead they came up with the idea that Bond would take her to his ancestral home in Scotland. The reason being that it gave the film more thematic depth for bond to take his adopted mother to his family home to protect her.

    0ea906c954de359ecba539b979c84790.jpg

    Then there is a ton of stuff about SP:
    • John Logan wrote a two-art film that focussed on central Africa as a location and the gold-pan mining.
    • The original finale sounded fantastic. There'd have been some intelligence gathering at Westminster and tanker would on the Thames next to the building with a bomb on it.
    • there would be a gun fight in Parliament and a chase that ended at the top of Big Ben!
    • It was Logan who used the MI6 team more. Apparently, P&W and Mendes didn't like it as it felt too like the Mission: Impossible films. Mendes vetoed Q going on the mission with Bond and getting kidnapped.

    james1.jpg
  • SatoriousSatorious Brushing up on a little Danish
    Posts: 233
    This might be mentioned elsewhere in the thread (I didn't go back through all of it), but there are a number of Bond scripts here, many of which I hadn't seen before (which are occasionally a little different to the final filmed versions):
    https://bulletproofscreenwriting.tv/james-bond-movies-collection-screenplay-download/
  • MalloryMallory
    Posts: 2,165
    @Satorious

    Thanks for those! Really interesting. That Spectre script. Yikes.
  • MI6AgentMI6Agent
    Posts: 21
    Does anyone have the initial John Logan Spectre drafts, with African Blofeld and traitor Tanner?
  • MI6AgentMI6Agent
    Posts: 21
    Here is Michael France's "Bond 17" first draft. FYI, this is a LATER draft than the one we all know. Not sure why the GoldenEye title is rescinded here. I apologize for the file size, it's a scan of my own.

    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fck8jHJggaicIWsPF2unsn9YMlKTirzv/view?usp=sharing
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