Sam Mendes which began transmission in early 2013. In April 2016 he was named as the President of the Jury for the 73rd Venice International Film Festival. On 5 January 2010, news broke that Mendes was employed to direct the 23rd Eon Productions installment of the "James Bond" franchise. The film, "Skyfall", was subsequently released on 26 October 2012, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Bond films. Mendes had been employed as a consultant on the film when it was in pre-production, and had remained attached to the project during the financial troubles of MGM. The film was a major
Sam Mendes released in October 2015. This made him the first filmmaker since John Glen to direct two Bond films in a row. Mendes and the actress Kate Winslet met in 2001, when Mendes approached her about appearing in a play at the Donmar Warehouse Theatre, where he was then artistic director. They married in May 2003, on what they characterised as a whim, while on holiday in Anguilla. Their son Joe Alfie Winslet Mendes was born on 22 December 2003 in New York City. Mendes also had a stepdaughter, Mia, from Winslet's first marriage to filmmaker Jim Threapleton. Mendes and Winslet's