FRUSTRATED James Bond chiefs face agonising re-shoots of key scenes after the release of No Time To Die was delayed again – because the super spy’s technology is now out of date.
The 007 franchise has product placement deals for mobile phones and other gadgets, but sponsors are now concerned their wares will no longer be cutting edge models after almost two years of hold-ups.
They want producers to edit Bond gadget-master Q handing out their latest kit in the latest costly blow to the trouble-hit film.
It comes after the long-delayed film’s planned opening was rearranged for October 2021, almost two years after its original premiere date.
And sources say the lucrative deals, which have become commonplace in major blockbusters and which help to finance hugely expensive productions, will still need to be honoured.
An insider said: “The details of the gadgets and things are all kept tightly under wraps, but everyone knows Bond always carries the latest kit with him.
“The problem is 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 the others are carrying something that has been out for ages. That isn’t really the point of these deals.
“The big tech firms want the stars to have all the new up-and-coming products to help promote them and sell them to fans.
“It means some of the scenes are going to have to be very carefully edited and looked at to bring things up to date.”
Details of the big-money tie-ins are kept under wraps, but it is understood mobile phone firm Nokia has provided handsets to feature with the stars in the film — while other lucrative deals include Omega watches, Bollinger champagne and Adidas footwear.
Daniel returns in the forthcoming blockbuster as super spy 007 for the final time, with bosses desperate for a huge box office hit after years of hold-ups due to the Covid pandemic.
The delays also mean fans are unlikely to find out who will replace the hunky actor for several years.
Other major releases delayed include Top Gun sequel Maverick and Marvel’s Black Widow, while Tom Cruise has faced endless battles to keep production of his Mission Impossible franchise on track.
Paul's £1.1m payday to become the norm
LOCKDOWN has hit many people hard but after shooting to fame in TV’s Normal People, Paul Mescal ended the year quids in.
I’m told the heart-throb commanded a fee of more than £1million for an ad campaign he starred in for electronics giant Samsung.
It was for an initiative called Spotlight, which aims to help young performers during the pandemic.
A source said: “Paul finished the year on a high thanks to his deal with Samsung and things are still looking up.
“It’s the biggest commercial deal he’d signed since he made it big on Normal People and it ended up being worth £1.1million.
“It’s a big fee but it is paying off for Samsung, as the advert has already been watched more than 2.5million times on YouTube alone.”
The source added: “Paul helped create the dance for the advert, which was supposed to inspire other young performers. It is a beautiful piece.
“Paul has really cemented himself as a big star of the future and everyone – film bosses and companies – want a piece of him.”
He is now in Australia shooting his first major Hollywood film, which is an adaptation of the opera Carmen.
Last week Paul opened up about how he’d struggled at the start of the pandemic and joked that he had blown his pay cheque from the hit BBC series on booze for his co-stars.
He said: “I did stupid things like buying the cast a round of drinks, which was pretty much my entire wage!”
He added: “I’ve struggled with the absence of work. A vast period of the day which would’ve been occupied is now totally unoccupied.”
I can guarantee it won’t be like this for much longer, Paul.
Twigs' R-Patz hell
FKA Twigs has revealed she was subjected to vile racist abuse during her three-year romance with Robert Pattinson.
Telling of the comments she received while engaged to the Twilight actor, prior to their split in 2017, she said: “People just called me the most hurtful and ignorant and horrible names on the planet.
"He was their white prince charming and they considered he should be with someone white and blonde.”
Grammy-nominated Twigs – who last month detailed her abusive relationship with ex Shia Labeouf – shared that trolls made her hate her appearance.
She told Louis Theroux on his Grounded podcast: “It’s essentially bullying and it does affect you psychologically.”
On being for ever linked to the Batman star, she said: “I‘m not trying to deny my history, I just think it’s important that I’m not defined by it, because he doesn’t have to be defined by it.”
There’s no doubting she is very much her own woman now.
Jess: I'm so horny
BEING single in a pandemic is clearly starting to get to Jessie J.
The Domino singer, who split from actor Channing Tatum last year, has admitted she is feeling sexually frustrated.
She joked on Instagram Live: “Give me your mood and colour guys. My mood is focused, happy, grateful . . . and horny.”
Jessie said her pal Lauren, who was sitting next to her, felt the same.
When one follower told them they needed a man, Jessie responded: “We should just start making out, me and Lauren, we spend so much time together.”
The singer, who masked up for a shopping trip in Los Angeles on Sunday, is back on top form after battling a chronic ear condition before Christmas.
Last week she was in the studio with singer/songwriter Ryan Tedder and she teased that new music could be in store.
Jessie added: “I got up at six and worked out. I’m trying to get fit for this next album.”
S-Becks appeal
IF ever there was a photo to persuade me into wearing glasses, it’s this.
David Beckham shared this photo with his new eyewear on Instagram from Florida , where he’s been working hard on his new football club Inter Miami CF.
The ex-England captain has made some questionable style choices over the years, but there’s no denying that he looks the business in these specs.
My eyesight is fine at the moment, but if some frames will make me look anything like Becks, then count me in.
Adele's blank over 21
ADELE says she can barely remember the release of her second album 21, the best-selling record by a solo artist of all time.
She marked the tenth anniversary of the album in a post on Instagram late on Sunday, reflecting on the collection which featured hits Someone Like You and Rolling In The Deep.
She wrote: “Well I never! Happy ten years old friend! It’s crazy how little I remember of what it was like and how I felt a decade ago.
“But thank you from the bottom of my heart for letting us into your lives and letting me be a soundtrack to some of it.”
But fans were quick to bombard Adele with comments asking about her much-anticipated fourth record – her first release since 2015’s 25.
One wrote: “Girl, where’s the album?”
The wait will be over soon, I’m sure of it.
Dollies mixing
ASHLEY Roberts has confirmed my story that the Pussycat Dolls will return with fresh new tunes in 2021.
They made a comeback with their first track in a decade, React, last year but insist there will be more songs before their tour, which is scheduled for May.
Ashley told the Heart Showbiz Hub podcast: “We’ll definitely do new music. We’ve got to get in the studio and make that happen.
“Especially now with having Miss Rona (coronavirus) step in, we’ve got time and we want to get people ramped up and excited again before we go out on tour, which, who knows when that will be.
“It has to be a time when everyone can be in a stadium and be safe and healthy. In the meantime, we’re going to keep the music flowing.”
I, for one, can’t wait.
Cheryl's mighty comeback
CHERYL Tweedy will return to the stage at Mighty Hoopla – her first performance in two years.
The Girls Aloud singer, who scored five No1s as a solo artist, has been confirmed as the festival’s headliner, having been due to perform at the event in June last year before it was cancelled.
En Vogue, Eve, Atomic Kitten, Raye and even Katie Price are also in the line-up for the event on September 4 at South London’s Brockwell Park.
Given it will be the 20th anniversary of Girls Aloud next year, this should be a nice little warm-up for her.
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