The best James Bond that never was?

[davidb]

the most interesting extras on the dvds in the bond series are when they were looking for a new actor for the role ,sam niell had the job but cubby changed his mind and it went to timothy dalton ,burt reynolds was in the frame in the early 70s ,crikey !! james bond in a cowboy hat driving a trans am ! ,what actors do you think would have been good at it but never got the role ? or in the case of reynolds what near misses who could have ruined it have we had ?

[dremble wedge]

Oliver Reed was in the running when Connery quit after You Only Live Twice.

I think he would have been a formidable 007 in On Her Majesty's Secret Service with his co-stars from The Assassination Bureau...

[Amethyst_Isle]

If you look on the other DVD extras they even screen tested James Brolin for the role as well which would at least have been intersting if he got the role (they show some test footage with Maud Adams for the role in Octopussy ) this was because Roger Moore was negotiating a contract to wether play or not play Bond.

I liked Pierce Brosnan as Bond but sadly he never went on to play him further,if I was to choose an actor to play Bond I would go for Clive Owen,I thought he was gonna play him after Pierce did not and thought he would have made a great Bond imo (Dainel Craig is good though ) but maybe he will still be considered again.

[Briant]

Stanley Baker had that cruel streak that the role requires. Personally I don't like Daniel Craig as Bond. I think Clive Owen would have been a better choice, given his acting in 'Sin City.'

[davidb]

theres always rumour that george lazenby and timothy dalton were sacked isnt there? if theyd been allowed to carry on they would have been great ,but then that would have been "who was the best james bond who got sacked then got their job back " too long winded ,and only two possible candidates !

[Dandy Forsdyke]

David Niven*, Cary Grant and Richard Johnson were all in the frame at various times.

(*yes, I know.... the first Casino Royale, 1967..... )

[batman]

Lazenby and Dalton weren't sacked. GL turned down a 7 picture deal and Dalton decided that he didn't want the job anymore. These events have been confirmed by Eon.

I think Neill and Brolin were both awful in their screen tests and Clive Owen would be dreadful. The man is really wooden in most things and has that awful voice. Craig is magnificent as Bond.

The best 'Bond who never was' for me is Richard Burton circa 1962.



I will also say that IMHO if Lazenby had taken that deal he would have been superb. A gave a much under rated performance in OHMSS.

[davidb]

another question i could have asked is what actors could be a good bond now ? if daniel craig give it up ,not that i think theres anything wrong with him ,a big mistake at any time in the series history would have been to have given it to an american actor ,which theyve been tempted to do occasionally ,i know weve only had two english bonds out of six but americans doing it would spell the end for me

[batman]

Jason Isaacs.

[Santonix]

I wish Patrick McGoohan had taken the role years back. For the future Mr. Bond, I think Max Beesley could be an interesting candidate.

[davidb]

i remember when roger moore was due to give up in the early 80s ,the red hot favourites [ at least in the popular press ] were ian ogilvy or lewis collins to takeover ,i wonder how it would have turned out ? at the time i would have agreed ,with hindsight , hmmmm

[christoph404]

Originally Posted by davidb another question i could have asked is what actors could be a good bond now ? if daniel craig give it up ,not that i think theres anything wrong with him ,a big mistake at any time in the series history would have been to have given it to an american actor ,which theyve been tempted to do occasionally ,i know weve only had two english bonds out of six but americans doing it would spell the end for me

Only two English Bonds and I think only one of the six who was qualified by nationality.( and it was neither of those two Englishmen your thinking of ) On the topic of Bond that never was, Michael Billington (better know as Foster from the TV series UFO) holds the record for the most number of screen tests for the part, he came very close to getting the role. American actor John Gavin actually signed for "Diamonds are Forever" but Connery as we know returned at the 11th hour. Gavin was paid in full for a film he never appeared in and part of his contarct meant he even received residuals later on. Nice work, he must be THE Bond that never was!

[billy bentley]

I'm not a Bond man myself, I much prefer The Prisoner and am glad Cubby never cornered Paddy. But depending which way you wanted to go might I suggest James Fox or Tommy Cooper !

[lordtednfs]

Cary Grant was the first to be offerd the part of Bond but turned it down saying he was too old.

____________________
Hooked off the line

[donna]

Errol Flynn before he lost his looks.