British writer Lee Child, 71, said he ultimately declined to write the next big James Bond story because he thinks the series needs to ‘move on’
Jack Reacher’s author turned down the chance to pen a James Bond comeback blockbuster because 007 is “worn out”.
British writer Lee Child, 71, said he ultimately declined to write the next big Bond story because he thinks the series needs to “move on”. He said he would have only got a cut of the cash from writing a big Bond story.
But he gets to keep all the money made from penning his own US-style version for fellow military hero Reacher to himself. He said: “The Fleming estate tried twice for me to write a Bond book. I thought, no, I’m not going to.
“First of all, why would I spend a year writing a Bond for a percentage when I could write a Reacher for 100%? Second, I didn’t particularly like the Fleming estate. They were silly, difficult to deal with, in my opinion.”
Reacher now airs a TV series on Amazon, the same company that has bought the Bond rights. “The Amazon purchase of the Bond franchise is interesting because it is, in my opinion, worn out,” Mr Child said.
“It still has distinctly post-war roots. There’s a fantastic book called The Man Who Saved Britain, by Simon Winder. It’s a great analysis that basically says Fleming’s success is due to the fact that after the Second World War we had lost all our actual power.
“They turned to James Bond because even though we couldn’t send a gunboat any more, we could send James Bond. It is still firmly rooted in that kind of post-war consolation.
“It needs to change. It needs to move on.”