The next James Bond movie is in a bit of turmoil right now as the film is currently without a director. However, it seems that before Danny Boyle left the project, he may have helped to select the man who will play the main villain of the piece. Said Taghmaoui who played Sameer, one of the team of soldiers that backed up Wonder Woman in her solo picture, says that before Boyle left the project, he chose the actor as a potential bad guy, though it seems that it all depends on the decision of the nationality of the bad guy. According to Taghmaoui ...
We don't know who the director will be, and the producers don't know if they're going to go Russian or Middle East with the baddie right now. I literally just received a message saying: 'If they go Middle East, it's you. If they go Russian, it's someone else.' It's the story of my life. Always on that line between something that could change my life and something that disappears."
It seems that while the final decision on who the next Bond villain might be has yet to be decided, Said Taghmaoui is one of the last people in the running. What's interesting is that we may know who the other guy is too. A rumor surrounding Danny Boyle's departure as director indicated that it involved the casting of an actor named Tomasz Kot as a Russian bad guy. The rumor claimed Boyle was clashing with star Daniel Craig over the choice. Depending on the validity of this rumor, it could be that the bad guy has actually already been cast and the producers decided to go with the Russian bad guy instead of the Middle Eastern one. Alternatively, it's possible the final decision hasn't been made, but Boyle left when Kot became one of the final choices, and the director realized he wouldn't have the final say. Based on the fact that Said Taghmaoui told the United Arab Emirates site The National he was apparently still in the running he either is, or nobody has told him he isn't.
If it is down to these final two actors, a final decision likely won't be made until a new director has been found. A number of names have floated around in recent weeks, from Baby Driver's Edgar Wright to S.J. Clarkson. It's unclear if anybody has the inside track, as producers are reportedly still scheduling meetings with potential replacements, so some of the names being brought up might not ultimately be interested.
Decisions will need to be made quickly if the next James Bond movie is to start filming on time and make its November 2019 release date.
