James Bond fans beware: Wikipedia reveals major ‘Skyfall’ spoiler
LOS ANGELES – James Bond fans beware – Wikipedia’s entry for the latest 007 film “Skyfall” contains spoilers big enough to drive an Aston Martin through.
It’s a posting that includes a full plot summary, which jeopardizes major twists involving the fate of one character and the future of MI6, the agency Bond calls home. Seriously, reading Wikipedia will have Bond devotees reaching for their vodka martinis.
Don’t worry, we won’t spoil it, but best to steer clear of the web’s encyclopedia if you want to stay in the dark.
How did that happen? “Skyfall’s” secrets have remained closely guarded throughout its development and production, with the film’s producers teasing out key details, such as the singer behind the film’s theme song (it’s Adele!) and the bizarre blonde appearance of chief villain Javier Bardem, until the last possible moment.
But all that intrigue went up in smoke after “Skyfall” opened overseas in countries like the United Kingdom and Russia two weeks before its U.S. debut. The good news for the film’s backers is that new James Bond movie “Skyfall” is off to a roaring start, collecting $77.7 million in 25 markets last weekend. Featuring Daniel Craig in his third appearance as the skirt-chasing superspy, “Skyfall” opens stateside on November 9.
A spokesman for Sony, the studio handling Bond’s distribution, said that on a crowd sourced site like Wikipedia, it is difficult to police spoilers after a film has opened.
“Skyfall’s” Wikipedia problem is instructive for Hollywood given that many major films, such as last summer’s “Battleship,” are choosing to open early overseas before hitting the domestic marketplace, leaving them open to spoilage.