14 DAY TRIAL // After production was completed on “Skyfall,” director Sam Mendes said this would be his only James Bond movie, but he was eventually talked into coming back for the upcoming “SPECTRE” as well. This one is coming out at the end of the year, but fans shouldn’t expect him to return for a third.
In a new interview cited by the BBC, Mendes says that working on a James Bond is more of a “lifestyle choice” than a job, in that you have to travel the world and work for extended periods of time in complete “chaos.”
“SPECTRE” took 5 years to make, and that’s the kind of commitment Mendes would like to not repeat, mostly because it leaves him with little to no time for other projects. Theater being the love of his life, he is sorry to miss out on work here.
“I said no to the last one and then ended up doing it, and was pilloried by all my friends,” Mendes explains. “But I do think this is probably it. I don't think I could go down that road again. You do have to put everything else on hold.”
On the bright side, Mendes describes “SPECTRE” as a much bigger film than “Skyfall,” both in terms of the story and the cast, and the number of locations it was shot in.