What about Grant/Flynn as Bond

[stuart.scot]

As I understand it Cary Grant was the first choice to play James Bond, but turned it down because he didn't want to do more than one film.



Some fans might have had difficulty in seeing him play a Goverment assassin. However, I think Roger Moore and Cary Grant had a similar acting style, so If he had have played Bond I think he would have been terrific. However, he would have been 61 at the time of Dr. No, so I can't imagine him going beyond Goldfinger. But if he had accepted the role, we might never have heard of Sean Connery.



IMO as well Errol Flynn would have made a splendid Bond, either as a young man or as a fit healthy 53 yr old at the time Dr. No was made. Sadly as we all know Flynn self destructed and was dead at 50 after yrs of abusive hell raising.

[Windthrop]

name='stuart.scot']As I understand it Cary Grant was the first choice to play James Bond, but turned it down because he didn't want to do more than one film.



Some fans might have had difficulty in seeing him play a Goverment assassin. However, I think Roger Moore and Cary Grant had a similar acting style, so If he had have played Bond I think he would have been terrific. However, he would have been 61 at the time of Dr. No, so I can't imagine him going beyond Goldfinger. But if he had accepted the role, we might never have heard of Sean Connery.



IMO as well Errol Flynn would have made a splendid Bond, either as a young man or as a fit healthy 53 yr old at the time Dr. No was made. Sadly as we all know Flynn self destructed and was dead at 50 after yrs of abusive hell raising.

The Bond in the books is a fairly dissipated figure so the later Flynn would not necessarily have been bad casting.



Grant was among a number of actors that Fleming wanted to play Bond but the entire budget didn't stretch to Grant's fee. He did put into development a secret agent thriller movie and Bryan Forbes was hired to script it. Read Forbes' memoirs to find out about it.

[Dandy Forsdyke]

I thought David Niven was Ian Fleming's first choice?

[billy bentley]

I can't remember the "wish list v. money " sequence, but there's a terrific Bond/Fleming exhibition at the Imperial War Museum right now and it's a must for any serious fan of either, or both.

[Wicked Lady]

I read Ian Flemming's first two choices were Richard Todd (who was tied up with other things) and Patrick McGoohan (who thought Bond was too sexist - bless).

[batman]

I always thought Richard Burton (circa mid-60s) would have made a good Bond. He had the looks, charisma, that slightly dissipated look Windy mentioned and a hint of cruelty about him.

[Windthrop]

name='Dandy Forsdyke']I thought David Niven was Ian Fleming's first choice?

Niven apparently was in the 50s along with Grant. Niven certainly had the background to play it - Military/Public School et al.

name='Wicked Lady']I read Ian Flemming's first two choices were Richard Todd (who was tied up with other things) and Patrick McGoohan (who thought Bond was too sexist - bless).

Todd claims he nearly got the part but lost it over schedulin difficulties. Alot of stars around that time claim they nearly got Bond. Rod Taylor would have had it but turned down the chance to audition because he didn't think it would be a success. He did a good Bond rip-off in The Liquidator (an unfortunate title - sounds like a movie about bankruptcy !).

[Harleybloke]

I always thought Alan Rickman could have done it.

[Marky B]

In the books,Bond was created along with the looks of Hoagy Carmichael.



Just imagine if Bob Holness perserverd playing Bond after his radio performance and Sean Connery became presenter of Blockbusters.



"I'll have a P,Sean."

"Stop taking the pish,boy."

Ta Ta

Marky B

[christoph404]

Richard Burton was going to play Bond in the first Bond film in 1959 based on a script by Kevin McLory and Jack Whittingham, (Thunderball). Hitchcock was favorite to direct. The whole project collapsed at an advanced stage but McLory owned the film rights to "Thunderball" He later sued Flemming for converting his script almost verbatim into a novel without asking or giving credit, Flemming was forced to eat humble pie having been unable to defend the charge of plagarism against him and had to pay substantial damages to McLory. To this day, the "Thunderball" novel must carry the note "based on a screenplay by Kevin McLory and Jack Whittingham" Taking inflation into account "Thunderball" is the most succesful Bond of all time as is the novel. As we all know Bond resurfaced later with Connery and the rest is history but Burton came very close to playing the role.

[stevie boy]

I hope that the Richard Burton impersonator(Hopkins) is not reading,otherwise he may try and get the role

[batman]

I believe McClory wanted to Burton to play Bond when he planned his own version of Thunderball in the 60s, but couldn't get anyone interested in going up against the Connery/Eon films. He eventually agreed a co-production deal with Eon.

[christoph404]

name='stevie boy']I hope that the Richard Burton impersonator(Hopkins) is not reading,otherwise he may try and get the role

I could see Hopkins as a Bond villain, but maybe he is possibly getting on a bit to be a physical threat to Bond!

[dremble wedge]

The one I would have liked to see as Bond is Ollie Reed. He was considered circa 1968 for OHMSS.



Mind you, if he had become Bond he probably wouldn't have made The Devils and The Three Musketeers, so scrap that, as you were...

[batman]

name='christoph404']I could see Hopkins as a Bond villain, but maybe he is possibly getting on a bit to be a physical threat to Bond!

Apparently he was offered the role of M before Dame Judi but turned it down .... only to turn up in virtually the same part in Cruise's MI films!

[stuart.scot]

I imagine Hopkins would have been a good M if Casino Royal was set in the 50s, as an introduction of Bond before Dr. No. No way a woman would have had such a senior post in the civil service back then, but the great Judi Dench still played M and the story, though an introduction to Bond, was set in the present day.

[Dave Homewood]

The first actor to play James Bond in any form was Barry Nelson, an American actor, in an adaptation of Casino Royale for US television in 1954. The villain was played by the incomperable Peter Lorre. Nelson wasn't too bad either, but nowhere near as good as Daniel Craig.

[stuart.scot]

The fact U.S tv had the rights to Casino Royale meant Sean Connery couldn't do what was really the introduction of the character. but jumped straight into Dr. No

[Windthrop]

The series had a long and torturous path to the screen dues to the rights and the fact that alot of people didn't think it had a hope in hell. The director Gregory Ratoff owned them at one time and asked Robert Morley what he should do with them. Morley told him to get rid of them for whatever he could get since they were a disaster waiting to happen. Morley also turned down the part of M in the Brocolli series. He did later turn up as an M like figure in When Eight Bells Toll.

[jamesharris]

name='Dave Homewood']The first actor to play James Bond in any form was Barry Nelson, an American actor, in an adaptation of Casino Royale for US television in 1954. The villain was played by the incomperable Peter Lorre. Nelson wasn't too bad either, but nowhere near as good as Daniel Craig.

talk about damned by faint praise!