Hans Zimmer has been brought onboard to score the new James Bond film, No Time to Die. He’s replacing Dan Romer, who was previously announced as the film’s composer but was dismissed due to “creative differences,” reports Variety. It’s the first time in the 58-year history of Bond films that a composer has been replaced during post-production.
No Time to Die is the 25th film in the Bond franchise. It’s slated for an April 8th release (April 3rd in the UK), which means Zimmer doesn’t have much time to write, record, and master an original score. With the film currently in post-production in London, Zimmer will likely need to pull some all-nighters — especially considering he’s already penning scores for Wonder Woman 1984, Top Gun: Maverick, and Dune this year.
If there’s one thing we already know about No Time to Die, it’s that it’s jam-packed with too-real action. Sure, the behind-the-scenes look was cool, Christoph Waltz returning as Blofeld was good news, and the first trailer got our hopes up; at the same time, it’s hard knowing that the film gave Craig an ankle injury that warranted surgery, an on-set explosion injured a crew member, and there was a major directorial switcheroo before any of that. Perhaps this is why Daniel Craig said he’s “done” playing Bond after this film.
(Read: Composer of the Year Hans Zimmer on Scoring the Future)
Maybe Zimmer is the glue Bond 25 needs to come together. After all, he’s behind some of the best film scores of the 2010s. It’s not too big a stretch to hope for.
No Time to Die is directed by Cary Fukunaga (True Detective, Beasts of No Nation) and has Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Scott Z. Burns, and Fleabag and Killing Eve creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge to thank for the script. Oscar winner Rami Malek stars as the main villain, Safin, alongside Waltz. Returning cast members include Naomie Harris as Eve Moneypenny, Ben Whishaw as Q, Léa Seydoux as Dr. Madeleine Swann, Ralph Fiennes as M., Jeffrey Wright as Felix Leiter, and Rory Kinnear as Bill Tanner.
We don’t know too much about the script itself, but an important key is that Lashana Lynch, who stars as Nomi in the film, appears to be taking over the iconic 007 M16 agent number at some point. Speculate as you deem fit.
