Going for the gold(finger)

From EW.com

Bond’s latest assignment: Kick-start the 2012 London Olympics. According the The Sun, Queen Elizabeth II personally invited actor Daniel Craig (who stars in the upcoming James Bond installment Skyfall) and Danny Boyle (the artistic director of this summer’s Olympic games), to Buckingham Palace to film a 007 mini-movie in honor of the games.

“The Arrival,” which was filmed thanks to unprecedented access to Her Majesty’s private rooms, will be viewed by billions of people around the world during the opening ceremony on July 27. The mini-movie will show, among other things, Bond learning his charge and jumping on a helicopter bound for the East London Olympic stadium where ceremony takes place. In a thrilling denouement, Craig-as-Bond will reportedly parachute into the stadium that night.

It’s all part of a major wave of British patriotism in a year that celebrates the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and Bond’s 50th anniversary on film. A royal spokesperson issued this statement: “Buckingham Palace is involved in a number of filming projects during this special Jubilee year and we would not go into details of any particular project until nearer the time of transmission.”

If nothing else, James Bond’s next transmission to the U.S. will come Nov. 9 when the franchise’s 22nd installment Skyfall hits theaters.