28 Jan – After two years of continuous delays due to the pandemic, the producers of the James Bond movie, "No Time To Die" has another challenge in hand - making sure that 007 is not using outdated technology. It was reported that the film had to reshoot some of its key scenes following news that the movie was delayed again from April to October this year, after sponsors realised that some of their product placement deals for mobile phone and other gadgets are no longer the cutting-edge models they were back when the film was first shot. One of the scenes that had to be reshot include one where Bond's gadget-master Q hands out their kit.
Said one source, "The details of the gadgets and things are all kept tightly under wraps, but everyone knows that James Bond always carries the latest kit with him. The problem is that some of those things were the very latest models back when they started filming. But by the time the movie comes out now it will look like Daniel Craig and all of the other cast members are carrying something that has been out for ages. That isn't really the point of these deals." The source pointed out that these sponsors want the stars to have all the new up-and-coming products to help promote them and sell them to fans, which meant that some of the scenes will have to be carefully edited to ensure that these gadgets are up-to-date. Although details about these tie-ins have not been revealed to the media, it was reported that mobile phone company Nokia's 8.3 5G smartphone was among those to be featured in the film, but as it was launched in October 2020, it would be too outdated for James Bond.
It is noted that although "No Time To Die" was originally scheduled for release in November 2019, it was postponed to February 2020, and then to April 2020 after director Danny Boyle's departure. The pandemic had since delayed its release again to April 2021 before Universal made an announcement again this month that it will be shown in cinemas in October 2021.