Mendes out of contention for 'The Hunger Games' due to 007 commitments - rumour

According to the industry blog Deadline, "American Beauty" director Sam Mendes has taken himself out of the running to direct "The Hunger Games", the first in a trilogy of apocalyptic survival stories.

The director who has been in talks to direct Bond 23, and prior to the production halt was on the team as a consultant, was amongst David Slade and Gary Ross as possible directors for the feature film adaptation.

A Deadline source says that Medes took himself out of the running "because the MGM picture is clearing up and it looks like production on 007 could begin by late summer or early fall, 2011 with Mendes at the helm and Daniel Craig back in the Aston Martin."

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