Red Dead Redemption and the James Bond 007 franchise have very little in common, so we didn't expect to ever be writing about the two in the same article, but here we are.
In a rather absurd - and since discredited - rumor, the embattled filming of Bond 25 was further hindered when director Cary Joji Fukunaga didn't show up on set one day because he was busy playing Red Dead Redemption 2.
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?
The latest James Bond film has had trouble during filming already. Danny Boyle was set to direct prior to Fukunaga but walked out on creative differences, and lead actor Daniel Craig - who returns to depict 007 despite having said the previous film was his last outing as Bond - suffered an injury on-set.
Cary Fukunaga was accused of running late and holding up shooting due to playing video games, specifically Red Dead Redemption 2, of which he is a known fan. The director refuted these claims, and since neither side has any concrete evidence, the whole situation is a bit of a mess.
Fukunaga took to Instagram to clarify the situation, mentioning that his progress in the story mode of the game has been "stunted at 63% for months" and that if anyone would spoil the game before he's finished filming Bond 25, he'd be "pissed". That is a sentiment we wholly understand.
He also explained that in a job like his "no one sleeps", let alone has time to play video games long enough to not show up on set. Filming schedules are extremely tight, in order to keep expenses as low as possible, and leaving no time to waste.
Who knows, maybe something good will come of this - Take-Two has recently expressed interest in selling licensing rights to its IP for the creation of films, and this highlight of Fukunaga's appreciation of Red Dead Redemption could lead to a film directed by him in the future.
After he's finished playing through 2, of course.
