On earlier discussions: Alex Massie tackles the "Blond Bond" question on NRO that Eno addressed recently. He's slightly more optimistic, though for not any particularly legitimate reason, but fully cognizant of the problems plaguing the Bond film series.

That should serve as a warning: The new Bond film's producers' talk of more
character and fewer gadgets will not necessarily count for anything. The sad
truth is that, with a couple of exceptions, the Bond movies have flattered their
fans as a prelude to letting them down, slipping too quickly from mindless
entertainment into moronic pandering to the lowest imaginable common
denominator. A charitable estimate might be that only half a dozen of the 21
movies are really worth watching.
The formula desperately needs to return to
the spirit of Fleming's books, not so that Bond can be "relevant" (a dreadful
word and concept in itself) but simply so he is at least somewhat plausible. I'm
not sure if it is reassuring or not that Paul Haggis, writer of the shockingly
overrated Milion Dollar Baby, has been brought in to doctor the script for
Casino Royale. But his hiring at least demonstrates that the movie's producers
are taking their responsibilities more seriously than they have in the past.

Eh, we'll see. I haven't seen the past three or four at least, anyway, so I'm not particularly concerned. Massie has a good sense of what makes Bond tick, though, and for that it's worth hearing what he has to say. And he even threw in that Million Dollar Baby bash for you, too.

I enjoyed the books quite a bit, almost as much Eno, and would like to see a better Bond. But I won't be hurt if it doesn't happen.