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
James Bond filmography earlier portrayed him. The "Daily Mirror" ran a front-page news story critical of Craig, with the headline, "The Name's Bland – James Bland". Craig first played Bond in the 2006 film "Casino Royale", an adaptation of Fleming's novel of the same name and a reboot of the Eon series, which saw Bond earn his 00 status. Despite the negative press on his appointment, Craig was widely praised by critics and former Bonds after the release of "Casino Royale", believing him to have been the first actor to truly nail Fleming's character in the book: Todd McCarthy, reviewing the film for