Spielberg tried once again after Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) hit theatres when Broccoli called him asking to use the movie’s iconic five-note musical melody in a scene in 1979’s Moonraker. This time, he had a good deal in hand. However, that too went in vain.
“I said, ‘I’ll make you a deal. I’ll give you permission to use the five notes if you let me direct a Bond film.’ And he said no. But I gave him the five notes anyway,” Spielberg recalled. “They consistently turned me down. He never explained why he wasn’t letting me into the Bond family,” he added.
Missed opportunities aside, Spielberg bounced back to create the memorable and iconic Indiana Jones franchise (1981-2023).
“When I told that story to George Lucas in 1977, when we were in Hawaii together getting ready for the release of Star Wars: A New Hopehe said, ‘I have something better than Bond. It’s called Indiana Smith,’ which is what it was called at the time. He told me the premise of the Indiana Jones series, and that’s how I got that job.”
But is he still open to helming a James Bond film? “My answer would be: ‘You can’t afford me’,” he replied.
The franchise is now with Amazon MGM Studios with Dune director Denis Villeneuve set to direct the next installment. The search for the next actor to play Bond after Daniel Craig is still on.
Spielberg’s latest film, Disclosure Dayis currently playing in theatres.
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