23rd James Bond Film Marks 50th Anniversary of 007 Franchise

Fans of British super spy James Bond can finally stop holding their breath while waiting for the next James Bond film: The 23rd James Bond film currently creatively titled "Bond 23" will have Agent 007 shooting, spying, and hopefully seducing his way into worldwide theaters November 9th, 2012. 2012 just happens to be the 50th anniversary of the 007 franchise. That translates to a whole lot of martinis shaken not stirred, goons shot, Q gadgets destroyed, fiendish plots foiled, and tuxedos pressed. If you wanted to lay each of the featured Bond Girls end to end, I wouldn't be surprised.

Daniel Craig is confirmed to continue his rugged albeit blond interpretation of James Bond that was a hit in the 007 reboot "Casino Royale" and a hit or miss with its sequel "Quantum of Solace." Sam Mendes of "Jarhead" and "American Beauty" acclaim is attached to direct. Bond screenwriter Neal Purvis who helped write all the Bond films since "The World Is Not Enough" continues his streak with "Bond 23."

"Casino Royale" rebooted James Bond by showing how he obtained his 007 license to kill status for MI6 and how green he was after his first major mission. "Quantum of Solace" allowed Bond to mature after the devastating blows dealt to him from "Casino Royale." He found his evil organization to thwart and learned to steel himself emotionally to be the great company man that we know and love. In theory, "Bond 23" would be Act III of this James Bond reboot. Chances are he will make his decisive strike against the organization and maybe finally get around to introducing himself to Moneypenny.

Given that "Bond 23" is set to be the highlight of Bond's 50th anniversary, there probably will be a few nods and references to previous Bond films. Who knows, maybe Sean Connery will get dragged out of retirement to give the current Bond a slap of confidence. But hopefully the cameos and throwaway references will not deter from the gritty atmosphere. That was the problem of Pierce Brosnan's last James Bond entry "Die Another Day," which marked the 20th Bond film and the 40th anniversary of the franchise. All of the references thrown in like spaghetti against the wall made the James Bond fan pay more attention to the in-jokes instead of the generic popcorn action film among a sea of popcorn action films that began killing the Bond franchise. The last thing needed after the "Casino Royale" reboot is a regression back to generic action. Bond was a quintessential pop culture icon. Hopefully the studios remember that and try not to bastardize it.