New James Bond Movie: First Draft of the Script Is Done, Says Steven Knight

With so much of the frenzied James Bond interest centered on who might be taking over from Daniel Craig as 007, something many believe is going to be announced imminently, the matter of the all-important script has largely been ignored.

Well, according to Steven Knight, that key element is now complete.

Speaking to Zoe Ball on the U.K.’s Greatest Hits Radio, when asked if he’d done the script draft, Knight replied: “I’m nodding silently.”

The prolific screenwriter, who created “Peaky Blinders,” “A Thousand Blow” and “House of Guinness” and helped write the new Oasis documentary “Don’t Look Back in Anger,” described writing Bond as “more than bucket list,” adding he felt he was “doing my duty for King and country by taking this thing on.”

He added: “I’m absolutely loving doing it. It’s an honor to be asked. And believe it’s going to be so good. I really do believe it’s going to be amazing.”

Earlier in the week, Knight appeared to hint that he knew who had been cast as Bond in the 26th instalment and franchise reboot, being directed by Denis Villeneuve and coming from Amazon MGM Studios.

Asked by BBC Radio 4’s “Today” program whether he’d written the film with the chosen actor in mind or based on what he knew about the character he replied, “It’s a bit of both.” He added: “It does make life a little bit easier if you know who that person is, but also you have to write the character, not the actor.”

The update comes just days after Gary Oldman claimed that the crucial casting decision had been made and said he was hoping his “Slow Horses” co-star Jack Lowden — among the hot favorites — would be the one getting the call.

“It’s been rumored that [Lowden] is on the shortlist,” Oldman said in an interview with Canada’s “The Morning Show.” “We’re going to find out pretty soon, aren’t we? Because they have picked him. They have made their choice, but they have not announced it yet. So my fingers are crossed for Jack.”