Steven Spielberg Reveals He Was Rejected by the ‘James Bond’ Franchise Multiple Times

Steven Spielberg has directed some of the most beloved blockbusters in cinema history, from summer classics to era-defining adventure franchises. Despite that legendary career, there’s one iconic series that never gave him the chance to sit in the director’s chair, no matter how many times he asked.

That franchise is James Bond, and Spielberg recently opened up about just how persistent his pursuit of the role actually was. Appearing on ‘The Rest Is Entertainment‘ podcast while promoting his new film ‘Disclosure Day,’ the director revisited a decades-long saga of rejection from the 007 franchise that he’s clearly never quite let go of.

Spielberg revealed that his fascination with Bond dated back to seeing ‘Dr. No’ as a young moviegoer, and once ‘Jaws’ turned him into one of Hollywood’s hottest directors, he decided to make his move. He called longtime Bond producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli directly after that success, volunteering himself for the job, only to be turned down outright.

That wasn’t Spielberg’s only attempt to get his foot in the door. He explained that Broccoli reached out again a few years later after ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ became a hit, this time asking permission to use the film’s iconic five-note musical motif in ‘Moonraker.’ Spielberg tried turning the request into a bargaining chip, offering the notes in exchange for a chance to direct, but Broccoli declined once again.

Despite giving away the rights to the five-note theme anyway, Spielberg never got a clear explanation for why Broccoli kept shutting him out of the Bond universe. He described the producers as having consistently turned him down without ever addressing his repeated attempts to join the franchise.

That closed door ended up redirecting Spielberg’s career in an entirely different direction. Spielberg has said that sharing his Bond frustrations with George Lucas in Hawaii in 1977, just before the release of the original ‘Star Wars,’ led Lucas to pitch him an alternative concept called “Indiana Smith.” That pitch eventually became ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark,’ launching the Indiana Jones franchise and giving Spielberg one of the most successful series of his career instead.

Reflecting on the whole ordeal today, Spielberg doesn’t seem to harbor any lingering resentment, even acknowledging that walking away from the franchise ultimately let him prioritize time with his family. Still, when asked what he’d say if Bond producers came calling now, his response carried a distinctly different tone than the eager young director who once begged for the job.

His answer, simply put, was that they couldn’t afford him anymore. It’s a fitting punchline for a filmmaker whose career has long since outgrown any single franchise, even one as iconic as 007.

With Denis Villeneuve now attached to direct the next chapter of the Bond franchise under Amazon MGM Studios, Spielberg’s story serves as a reminder of just how different cinema history could have looked had those early phone calls gone differently.

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