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Rory Kinnear return as Tanner a clue to M-centric SKYFALL? // November 20. 2011
This week CultBox in the UK interviewed Rory Kinnear, who reprises his role as Bill Tanner in SKYFALL, now filming in and around London. The actor's comments appear to confirm that Tanner's boss M, played by Judi Dench, will indeed occupy a central role in the new Bond film's plot as well as raising the on-screen profile of her Chief of Staff. Below are excerpts from Kinnear's interview and FilmEdge speculation on their meaning follows:
You’re currently filming the new James Bond film, Skyfall, returning as M's Chief of Staff, Bill Tanner. How’s that going so far?
"Great, we’ve just been at Pinewood and around Waterloo and Smithfields doing some scenes with myself and Daniel [Craig] and Judi [Dench]. I go through to the beginning of February filming and I think they’re on until about April or May."
That sounds like a fairly long shoot for you, does this mean that we see a bit more of Tanner this time around?
"Yes, Tanner gets a bit more facetime this time, [the part] is a bit more beefed-up. He’s basically performing the same role but there’s a bit more of him."
There’s a lot of excitement surrounding the film with the 50th anniversary coming up; is that excitement present on set as well?
"I think everyone’s generally just really excited about the script and how good it is - and we’ve got Sam [Mendes] directing.
"Obviously this is now my second one so I know how Daniel and Judi work. We all seem to get on very well so it feels like I’m becoming slightly more part of the family."
Did you expect to return to the role of Tanner after Quantum of Solace?
"No, I wasn’t contracted to do any more so I guess I knew there was a possibility but I didn’t expect it, no."
In the books, Tanner is Bond’s best friend – would you like to see that dynamic develop onscreen?
"I don’t know, the Tanner of Quantum of Solace wasn’t really the Tanner of the books, so I guess it’s a new kind of role. He’s not the same age as Bond, as I think he is in the books, but I think in this film their relationship does develop, yes."
While we don't expect Tanner to become a major supporting character in SKYFALL, his increased on-screen presence after Kinnear had no contract to reprise the role implies this upcoming attack on M will buoy Tanner's character as well. Whether M remains head of MI6 after this unknown attack or is somehow forced to resign her office, Tanner may well remain in place and in play through the story — either at M's side as she's ousted or serving as liaison if a new head of MI6 is named.
We have little doubt that Tanner will remain loyal to M (and to Bond) regardless of the events which cause turmoil within MI6's power structure. How interesting might it be if M were ousted, perhaps Albert Finney's character takes her place, and Tanner remains to bridge the gap while keeping M's sensibility alive — and so keep Bond's field work in tune with their symbiotic success.
 Of course this scenario assumes several hypothetical story points: that M will lose her job heading MI6 as a result of this reported attack on her and/or the agency; that her potential replacement fosters antagonism toward M for whatever role her past has in the film's events; and that antagonism would be returned by Bond against her accuser/replacement. These aren't wild, unsupported shots in the dark, though, as SKYFALL's official story synopsis blatantly states that Bond's loyalty to M is tested. Fans of 007 well know that Bond rarely fails any cinematic test he's given, so we can easily assume that Bond will back his boss to the end.
But what end will that be? If Judi Dench did end up leaving the Bond franchise (against our wishes here at FilmEdge), her replacement starting off on the 'wrong foot' with Bond by ousting her would definitely renew and perhaps reinvigorate tension between Bond and his superior to keep the franchise moving forward but with a new flavor of tension. Somewhat like Lois Maxwell's Moneypenny spanning the character transitions as 007 morphed from Connery to Lazenby to Moore and beyond, Rory Kinnear's Tanner could serve as an established ally for Daniel Craig's Bond during this MI6 crisis. Tanner can serve the same dynamic even if Dench returns as M by the end of the story or perhaps in the next sequel, but either way it's clear that screenwriters Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and John Logan intend to put the character to expanded work in SKYFALL. This is another promising sign for the 23rd Bond film as a whole, not to mention good news for a talented actor like Kinnear.
— Article by Scott Weitz
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