Skyfall, Spectre Director Likely Done With James Bond After This Year

Sam Mendes' second James Bond movie, Spectre, is likely to be his last, the director has revealed.

Speaking with the BBC, Mendes talked about the possibility of doing more Bond movies. "I don't think I could go down that road again," he said. "You do have to put everything else on hold."

If this sounds vaguely familiar, it's likely because he said something similar after his first go with a Bond movie, 2012's Skyfall. However, he ultimately went back after he was given time to work on some theater projects.

He noted in the BBC interview that his decision to return to the franchise after his declaration earned him some grief from friends: "I said no to the last one and then ended up doing it, and was pilloried by all my friends. But I do think this is probably it."

Considering that Skyfall and Spectre have taken a total of five years to make, you can't blame Mendes for wanting to do something new. "It feels almost, even though we've just finished shooting it, like one big experience and it was a fantastic life-changing thing," he said. However, he described the process as an "enormous undertaking," adding, "It really is more a lifestyle choice than a job."

Skyfall is the highest-grossing Bond movie of all-time, so it's no surprise that producers wanted Mendes back for Spectre, the 24th official entry in the film franchise. Unfortunately, he wasn't joined by Skyfall cinematographer Roger Deakins, who was responsible for making the last movie arguably the best-looking in series history.

A theme song for Spectre has not yet been unveiled, though Mendes teased that it's already been recorded and we should be hearing more about it soon.

Spectre is due out on October 26 in the UK, and will be followed by a worldwide release on November 6. It's a direct sequel to the last three Daniel Craig-starring films, and features Christoph Waltz and the apparent return of SPECTRE, the villainous group from the Bond novels and early films.