Although I like the idea of a reboot for Bond 26, there’s an interesting scenario to consider. If they move too far away from 007 himself, do we risk losing what makes a James Bond movie feel like a James Bond movie?

The sad fact is that No Time To Die did this (but in the opposite direction) by taking Bond away from us with the end of his story. A reboot would obviously approach the character from his start, but such a version of Bond could come with its own pitfalls. Casino Royale played with this idea in its opening flashback, showing Bond just moments before he earned his double-O status, and it worked because it was such a short scene.

Do I really want them to go further back and see a rookie Bond still learning the ropes, making mistakes, and slowly becoming the confident agent we know? There’s an interesting story there, but I understand the argument that a new, kickass, modern Bond that ignores the end of No Time To Die could be compelling as hell, as well.