A View To A Role

This is not an all-inclusive list. Some names may have been accidentally omitted. Feel free to update, add to, or correct the existing list:


LIVE AND LET DIE

Burt Reynolds

Believe it or not, Burt Reynolds was wooed to play 007 after it became clear Sean Connery would not return after Diamonds Are Forever.

MGM kept pushing EON to hire Burt Reynolds to play Bond (he was a hot rising star back then) but EON steadfastly refused such a publicity casting stunt, insisting that Bond be British.

If Burt Reynolds had gotten the role of Bond, maybe Jackie Gleason would`ve ended up playing Sherriff J.W. Pepper.

Diana Ross

Writer Tom Mankiewicz wanted Diana Ross for the role of Solitaire in Live and Let Die. He thought it was time for a black woman in a leading role in a James Bond film and he lobbied hard for her inclusion. However, the studio declined his suggestion and went with the way the character was written in the book: a white fortune teller.

"One of the things that I wanted very much was for Solitaire to be played by a black woman. When it came time to do it (film LALD), UA was quite frightened of it for legitimate reasons from their point of view: the picture was going to be very expensive and they wondered, outside of cities like New York and London, how well that would go over with a new Bond. They`d had the experience of Her Majesty`s Secret Service. They were real careful." [Mankiewicz is quoted in Tom Soter`s 1993 tome Bond and Beyond]

Tom Mankiewicz and Guy Hamilton both felt that having a black female lead in the role of Solitaire would "alleviate" the problems the movie would face in having all black villains. A compromise was worked out, where Bond would sleep with a black woman (Rosie Carver - played by Gloria Hendry) but Solitaire would be kept white!


Gayle Hunnicutt was set to play "Solitaire in Live and Let Die, but got pregnant and backed out!

Miscellaneous

Actors Michael Caine, Jeremy Brett, Julian Glover (Kristatos in For Your Eyes Only), Michael Billington (Anya's lover in The Spy Who Loved Me) were all considered for the role of James Bond before Roger Moore got the part.


A VIEW TO A KILL

Debra Sue Maffet was a former Miss Beaumont University, Miss California and reigned as Miss America in 1983. After her reign, Maffett continued to reside in California where she embarked on a successful television career that included an Emmy nominated stint as hostess for PM Magazine in Los Angeles and television appearances on Matlock, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, David Letterman, Good Morning America, Bob Hope`s Specials and Hollywood Squares. In between all of this she found time to audition for the role of Stacy Sutton.

How seriously was she taken? Hard to tell. But to hear her tell it, the choice had come down to herself and Tanya Roberts. She told Cathy Dunphy, in her column for STARWEEK (the Torontro Star tv guide) "The only reason they chose Tanya over me is because Tanya has acted before and they couldn`t wait to see Prisoners." Prisoners of the Sea was a film she had just finished or was about to wrap up, but it couldn`t wrap up soon enough for Cubby Broccoli. Anxious to get the project moving along, he cast Roberts. Cathy Dunphy`s article appeared in the August 11th to August 18th, 1984 issue.

Lewis Collins

From the Thursday, August 26th, 1982 edition of The Daily Star (reprinted with permission):

Tough guy Lewis Collins is a wanted man - film fans are clamouring for him to play secret agent James Bond on the big screen. But Lewis fears he will never land the plum 007 role. He reckons the man behind the money-spinning Bond movies -Albert "Cubby" Broccoli - doesn`t like him. And that means his chances are extremely remote "unless we get together and smoke a pipe of peace."

Lewis, who stars as an undercover SAS officer in the blockbuster movie `Who Dares Wins`, believes he fits the Bond bill. And he isn`t the only one! He was voted tops to take over as Bond in a newspaper poll, but he says: "No one from the Bond stable has approached me so they obviously don`t want me."

Lewis certainly has the right pedigree for the job. The man who made his name as THE television toughie - Bodie of The Professionals - has already signed for a 25 million pound programme of three films with top action producer Euan Lloyd. It has been suggested that these films, which include Wild Geese 2 and Battle of the South Atlantic - based on the Falklands campaign - could net Collins a cool million pounds. But it is Bond that really captures his imagination. "It would be nice to get back to the original Bond, not the character created by Sean Connery - but the one from the books," he says. "He is not over-handsome, overtall. He is about my age (Collins is 36) and has got my attitudes."

The trouble with Lewis`s ideas is that big wheel Cubby doesn`t like them. Lewis revealed that he went to see Cubby two years ago. "I was in his office for five minutes, but it was really over for me in seconds. I have heard since that he doesn`t like me. That is unfair. He is expecting another Connery to walk through the door and there are few of them around. I think he has really shut the door on me. He found me too aggressive. I knew it all - that kind of attitude. Two or three years ago that would be the case, purely because I was nervous and defensive. I felt they were playing the producer bit with fat cigars. When someone walks into their office for the most popular film job in the worlds, a little actor is bound to put on a few airs. If Cubby couldn`t see I was being self-protective I don`t have faith in his judgement. Euan saw through that. You have three minutes to sell yourself but if you go on that line you fail. You have to be yourself - and you have a better chance if you are the right person." "I didn`t have that confidence then. I am just acquiring it now. The number of people who have suggested me as a candidate amazes me - and Cubby hasn`t given me another shot. I would even screen test and all that."

Pricilla Presley

When it comes down to casting, it`s often a matter of who is available that makes the difference in getting a job. For Priscilla Presley, it made all the difference. In 1984 she was starring on the hit CBS-Television show Dallas as Jenna Wade, but she also had an avid interest in moving her career to the big screen. Then, reportedly, EON came calling.

They were looking to cast the role of Stacy Sutton and were looking at several actresses. Presley may have had the inside track, but according to one New York based journalist who spoke to 007Forever, Presley was not interested in playing the role and the search to fill the role continued elsewhere.

Rutger Hauer

Rutger Hauer confirmed to the press back in 1983 he`d been asked three times to play a Bond villain.

Hauer said: "I heard those rumors, too (that he was in consideration to play James Bond). I don`t know about James Bond, but they asked me three times to play Bond`s bad guy. At one point, I said I think it would be interesting if you really threaten Bond and what is the way to do that? Have a bad guy who has the same spirit, the same sense of humor and the same skill and let Bond face this guy and really be endangered. But the villains are sidekicks, they aren`t really strong. They wouldn`t change it for me."

Ironically, the same type villain he describes would come along some 12 years later in the form of Alec Trevelyan in the 1995 film GoldenEye.

David Bowie

At the time, Bowie was the strongest contender to play villain Max Zorin in A View to a Kill. Bowie reportedly declined the role on the basis that he didn`t care for the script. Bowie told Rolling Stone Magazine: "I think for an actor, it`s probably an interesting thing to do, but for somebody from rock, it`s more of a clown performance. And I didn`t want to spend five months watching my double fall off mountains."

Sting

Singer/actor "Sting" was in contention for the role of Zorin. He was one of the few people to emerge from the 1984 fiasco called DUNE relatively unscathed. It may have been upon the basis of that performance that he was approached to play Zorin, but whatever the reasons that led up to it were, he flatly turned it down.

THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS

Amanda Donohoe

Donohoe, the star of such film and television projects as Liar, Liar (with Jim Carrey) and LA LAW ran several screen tests back in 1986, presumably for the role of Kara Milovy. At the time, Donohoe was presented by the tabloids as "Bond`s new blonde" and Cubby Broccoli was quoted as having told associates "she`s wonderful".

Antony Hamilton

When a worldwide search began for the next James Bond in 1986, 007 history says that Roger Moore anointed Pierce Brosnan as his successor. And try the producers did to secure Brosnan. But after failing to negotiate an agreement with NBC over Brosnan`s future, the role went to Timothy Dalton. But not so fast. Between Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton there was Pierce Brosnan. But between Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan there was Antony Hamilton. In fact, other than Brosnan, there was probably no other actor at that time that came so close to getting that coveted role of James Bond and ended up going home empty handed. But why? Who exactly was Antony Hamilton? How could he get so close and yet be denied?

Antony Hamilton was born in Liverpool, England 1952. He eventually became a professional ballet dancer with the Australian Ballet Company before making a move to Hollywood to pursue the life of an actor. He took small parts in television shows and movies, including the lead role of Samson in "Samson and Delilah". But it was a fateful mistake by another actor that would put Hamilton in position to make a run for Bond.

Antony Hamilton confirmed to People Magazine in December of 1985 that Albert R. Broccoli had contacted him about possibly taking over the role of 007. The People Magazine article was a small one, with a picture of Hamilton and the caption: "A View To A Role?". And depending upon whom you talk to, the story either goes that Antony was made a firm offer and then had it withdrawn, or that the talks were only preliminary and an offer was never made. What`s not in dispute is that after Cubby Broccoli began considering Hamilton, he discovered that Antony was homosexual, a definite lifestyle clash when compared to the role of James Bond as a womanizing heartbreaker.

Caught up in the mid 1980`s of Reagan-era conservativism, Hamilton never stood a chance. Whether it was withdrawn or merely not offered is probably pointless to debate. In the "old days", an actors sexuality, even the hint of it not being "straight", was kept quiet by the tabloids and other media outlets, who complicitly went along with the studio`s request to keep mum about it. But ever since the Rock Hudson debacle, it was apparent that any celebrity`s sexuality would become fair game. Cubby, nor the studio, could trust that Hamilton`s sexuality would not become an issue, nor could they guarantee that the press wouldn`t dig it up. After all, Broccoli and company were acutely aware of the firestorm that ensued when it was revealed that a former Bond Girl, Tula Cossey, was actually born a man.

Antony went on to small roles in a variety of films including "Jumping Jack Flash", which starred future Bond villain Jonathan Pryce as the title character. Hamilton did end up getting to play a spy of sorts; he starred for 2 years on ABC`s revival of Mission:Impossible that ran from 1988 -1990. He then joined forces with former "Cover Up" producer Bob Shayne for the television show "P.S. I Luv U". The show lasted one season.

Antony died of AIDS-related complications in Los Angeles March 29, 1995.

Below is an article on Antony Hamilton taken from the May 25th, 1985 edition of TV Guide. Already the foreshadowing, the parallels, to James Bond were beginning.

BALLETS TO BULLETS
--Lack of acting experience hasn`t kept the one-time Australian
dancer from starring in a prime-time spy series--
By Bill Davidson

There was considerable tension that monday morning on the set of the CBS series Cover Up. For one thing, a pistol shot had to be fired by one of the stuntment as part of the run-and-chase action. Ordinarily, pistol shots are as common on TV action shows as bangles on Mr. T--but this time everyone remembered the shot that had closed down the series not quite three weeks before. Cover Up co-star Jon-Erik Hexum had killed himself by shattering his skull with a blank from a .44 Magnum he had been reloading for a routine scene. Says Antony Hamilton, Hexum`s replacement as the hero of the series, "That pistol shot on the first day of the resumption of filming was a psychological hurdle we all had to get over--especially me, because I was a friend of Jon-Erik`s." (And especially co-star Jennifer O`Neill, some might have said, because, in 1982, O`Neill shot herself in the abdomen with a supposedly unloaded .38 caliber revolver she kept in the bedroom safe of her Bedford Hills, N.Y. home.)

The second cause of tension on the Cover Up set that day was the fact that Hamilton was making his debut as O`Neill`s new partner in espionage, Jack Striker (Hexum`s quite different character had been named Mac Harper). The cause of the anxiety was that the 6-foot-2, 30-year-old Hamilton had been a ballet dancer with the Australian Ballet Company, then a model for 10 years, and then an actor in only one previous TV production, an undistinguished ABC TV-movie called "Samson & Delilah." "A ballet dancer?" groaned one unsophisticated electrician on the set. "Do you think he`ll be an alto or a soprano?" To his surprise, Hamilton came equipped with a rich baritone, the rangy build of a pro-football wide receiver, a noticeable Australian accent and an aura of James Bond-like masculinity. A further surprise was the inexperienced Hamilton`s acting--though in all truth, acting, in such derring-do drama, consists mostly of running, jumping and chasing the bad guys in autos and other wheeled or winged vehicles. In his few talking scenes he was more than adequate. (One, however, required nine takes before he got it right, but that can happen even to Laurence Olivier.) The natural simplicity of Hamilton`s acting did not surprise Richard Anderson, who plays his usual role of intelligence-agency official as he did in The Six Million Dollar Man. In a perceptive analysis of his craft, Anderson said, "Acting basically is selling. We have to sell a sometimes unbelieveable story. Tony is good at selling. For 10 years, as a model, he had become very good at selling the clothes on his back."

Hamilton was born in England and adopted, at the age of 2 weeks, by an Australian hero of the RAF, Wing Commander Donald Smith, and his wife, Margaret, a nurse. Taken to Adelaide, Australia, at 3, young Tony grew up on a sheep farm and attended Scotch College (a Presbyterian-run middle and high school), where he was required to wear kilts as part of the school uniform. He also was required to play football, cricket, basketball and many other sports. "Australia is an enlightened country," says Hamilton, "and we also took ballet, with a thought that it might be unmasculine. In fact, I thought of it not only as artistic but also as the most rugged of the physical activities. In fact, the dancers always beat the `footies,` the football players, in stamina tests. So it was completely natural to me as a chance to get out of Australia, a very complacent country, and see something of the world."

The Australian Ballet went on tour to Russia and several East European countries, where it was a big hit with a classically based modern ballet called "Gemini." In Moscow, a ballet photographer named Vladimir Bliocht took 200 extraordinary photos of Hamilton, both in costume and in street clothes, and presented them to the young Australian at the airport when he left. "I saw myself in decent photographs for the first time," says Hamilton, "and since I was getting tired of the discipline of ballet anyway, I took the pictures to a modeling agent when we got to London."

And so, the second phase of Hamilton`s career began. He modeled clothes all over Europe, appeared in magazines such as Vogue and GQ, became a favorite subject of such world-famous photographers as Richard Avedon and Bruce Weber, and appeared in TV commercials for products like Close-Up toothpase and Hanes panty hose: "I didn`t wear them. I gaped at women wearing them, and I even tap-danced for Hanes in a Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers sequence."

By 1977, Hamilton had tired of modeling and moved to New York. "I had to keep on modeling to pay the rent, but I took acting classes with a good drama coach, Mervyn Nelson. That`s where I first met Jon-Erik Hexum, who was a Nelson student at the same time. Strangely, Jack--as we called him--wanted to be a model, but with his bulky chest and 220 pounds, he was too big. That`s why I was amazed when we both tried out for the part in the ABC movie `Samson & Delilah,` and I got the role. Jack was built more massively, more like a Samson, than I was. I later was told that I was picked because of my Australian accent. I guess Biblical dramas sound silly if they`re spoken in plain American, and some sort of foreign accent makes them more acceptable. That`s the way of Hollywood."

Late in the afternoon of Friday, Oct. 12, came that tragic accident when Hexum, preparing for a minor scene on 20th Century Fox`s Sound Stage 18, was sitting on a bed on a hotel-room set and reloading the .44 Magnum with blank cartridges. It still has not been explained why he, and not a propmaster, was doing the reloading, but the gun went off close to his head, and the sheer force of the exploding gunpowder drove a section of Hexum`s skull deep into his brain. He was rushed to a nearby hospital in a coma and died, without regaining consciousness, the following Thursday. Hamilton knew about the accident, of course, and was shocked and dismayed by it. He did not know about the cliffhanger drama that went on behind the scenes at 20th Century Fox before it finally involved him.

Terry Allan, one of Cover Up`s top executives, tells the story: "We immediately closed down the set after the accident, hoping that Jon-Erik would survive and return. But the following week, when we were told he was brain dead, we had to go into action to try to save the series. We knew that, unless we found a new male lead, we had two or three weeks at most before CBS would put us on hiatus. We looked everywhere--Los Angeles, New York, even Europe--and a lot of tests were made of possible replacements. CBS didn`t like any of them.

"Nearly three weeks after Jon-Erik`s death, we had a 5 P.M. Tuesday appointment with [programming chief] Harvey Shephard and other CBS brass to look at the screen test of the last 21 candidates. We now were about four days short of being dropped unless we came up with someone--and we didn`t have high hopes. That afternoon, I got the idea of calling Paul Darrow, an executive at Jon-Erik`s modeling agency in New York, to see if he had any ideas. I finally tracked Darrow down in Paris. He said he could think of only one guy who might fit the bill, name of Tony Hamilton. All he knew about him, aside from his modeling, was that he had done a TV-movie called `Samson & Delilah.` I never heard of the picture but I put my secretary to work tracking it down, and finally we found it at ABC. We asked them to send over tape of some of Hamilton`s scenes.

"I looked at the tape and saw this tall, powerful, handsome guy, with an Australian accent. I figured he might be right if we could make him an `outrider.` It would be totally different from the American character played by Jon-Erik. The problem was it was now 4 and the CBS brass were coming in at 5."

Five came and went and all 21 candidates in the screen tests were turned down by CBS. The network people left. Then Allan called in executive producer Glen Larson and Harris Katleman, president of 20th Century Fox Television, and showed them the Hamilton tape. "Wow!" said Katleman. "Let`s bring him in to talk," said Larson. Allan got on the phone to Hamilton`s agent. A small hitch. Hamilton was in rehearsal for an NBC TV-movie, "Mirrors," in which he was playing a macho, woman-chasing male dancer. "Bring him in now," said Allan.

Hamilton came in. Both Allan and Larson were impressed. He seemed brighter and more self-possessed than most young actors. Larson said to Allan, "Have Tony come here tomorrow to read with Jennifer. I`m going to write a special scene to see if their chemistry matches." The next day, it was obvious that their chemistry matched. "Call Harvey Shephard at CBS," said Larson, "and ask him to come over."

Shephard listened to the reading for a few minutes and said, "Go."

It may be one of the first times in TV history that a near-defunct series was brought to life again on the basis of nothing on film, nothing on tape--just two people reading a few pages of script in a producer`s office.

Hamilton was elated, but he still had 27 days of unbelievable ordeal ahead of him. "I had to continue in `Mirrors`," he says, "and begin work in Cover Up the very next morning after the reading with Jennifer. I`d get up at 5 for `Mirrors,` be on that set all day, start work in Cover Up at 7 P.M., work until 2 A.M., and then start the whole cycle over again. A couple of times they had to fly me from one set to another by helicopter. At one point, I called my father in Australia to bitch about this backbreaking schedule. Dad said, "Let me tell you a war story. In the Battle of Britain, I fought the Luftwaffe every day from 3 A.M. until midnight. My valet had to get me up after two hours` sleep. He`d be court-martialed if he didn`t have my signature on his wake-up slip. And that went on for months. So don`t complain, son.` I stopped complaining."

Today, Hamilton pretty much has settled into his part and Cover Up, once a marginal show, has picked up in the ratings. On the set, Hamilton is eager to learn from everyone--Anderson, O`Neill, the director, the technicians. "That, too, will change," mused one wiser, older assistant cameraman. Tony is in constant motion while discussing scenes, stretching his legs like a ballet dancer warming up, whirling about, or isometrically expanding his pectoral muscles. In his trailer dressing room, he is different. He listens to classical music, reads Eugene O`Neill and Lillian Hellman plays, and speaks lovingly of his lady friend, Emily Davis, who is a movie/TV production assistant in New York. So exhausting has been Hamilton`s schedule that he has not had time to see her. He spends his weekends recuperating in his West Hollywood apartment. As a conversationalist, Hamilton is a fount of interesting, sometimes revolutionary, ideas. After a fight scene, he says disconsolately, "I always win. Wouldn`t it make me more intriguing as a hero if I were a little more vulnerable and got beat up by the bad guys once in a while?"

Concerning Method-type acting with all its analyzing, he says, "Jennifer does that and I use the simplest techniques possible--but somehow it works out between us. Perhaps I`m so simple in my acting because I`m inexperienced and don`t know any better. The only time I did any Method acting, it was involuntary and maybe the will of God, in Whom I`m beginning to believe more and more. In `Samson & Delilah,` which we shot in Mexico, I came down with Montezuma`s revenge--fever, vomiting, the whole bit. I was so weak when I had to push down the pillars of the temple that I must have looked just like Samson did after losing his hair had made him so weak. Everyone asked me how I managed to pull off that scene and figured I must have talked myself into it. It was the germs or the virus, but I kept my mouth shut and everyone complimented me on my realistic acting."

Hamilton has made such an impression that Cubby Broccoli, the mogul of the James Bond movies, already has talked with him about becoming the fourth Bond. Anderson is so impressed with the young man that he`s sure it will happen. "And then," reflects Anderson, "think of the wonderful question in future trivia games: `Which of the James Bonds--Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore or Antony Hamilton--began as a ballet dancer?`"

Only in Hollywood.

Madonna

According to Entertainment Tonight and other news sources, Madonna was approached early in the production of The Living Daylights about possibly writing/performing the title song. Supposedly she agreed to the song only if then husband Sean Penn was given a role in the film. Penn was not hired, the two filed for divorce later in the year and A-ha got hired instead.

Pet Shop Boys

A bootlegged Pet Shop Boys LP in existence came complete with an instrumental track titled James Bond #1/James Bond #2. The sleeve says that it had originally been meant for The Living Daylights but was never used. Why it was not used is unclear, as it`s pretty good and Bond-like. It may possibly have been because of the group`s antipathy towards soundtrack albums (they also turned down the chance to do the music for The Lives and Loves of a She-Devil and Pretty Woman). The song was later used as the backing track to This Must Be The Place I Waited Years To Leave on the 1990 Behaviour album.

Pierce Brosnan

Brosnan was signed to play Bond in 1986. At the very least, he was the leading choice of Broccoli and company. The interest swirling around Brosnan as Bond caused NBC to hold onto Brosnan and his Remington Steele show, a show they had cancelled, but still had a 60 day renewal option on. The script sat on his nightstand for weeks, unread, until Brosnan was sure he was free to do Bond.

Then on the 59th day of a 60 day renewal window, NBC brought back Remington Steele. Yet it wasn`t totally over with. EON was willing to alter its schedule by 6 weeks to allow Brosnan to do both `Steele` and Bond, but finally Cubby Broccoli got tired of NBC`s hardball tactics and decided there was no reason to spend any more time and money pursuing Brosnan when people could see him on television for free.

Sam Neill, Lambert Wilson and Finlay Light

Barbara Broccoli, Michael Wilson and Director John Glen all considered Sam Neill to play James Bond in The Living Daylights. His name was circulating around the studios at that time, in part, due to the mini-series Reilly: Ace of Spies, but the one producer whose vote counted the most, Albert Broccoli, wasn`t so certain -- he was thinking of Lambert Wilson.

Aussie model Finlay Light was also mentioned for the role, but how seriously his ranking was on EON`s list is not known. It appears that Mr. Light may have bragged, exaggerated or even flat out fabricated a story that had EON was interested in him. In fact, some even wonder if Finlay Light exists. No one seems to have ever seen him, talked to him or heard of him.

LICENSE TO KILL

Briggite Nielsen

The star of such films as Red Sonja, Cobra and Beverly Hills Cop II had lunch with Barbara Broccoli in the late spring/early summer of 1988 to discuss the upcoming Bond film, then titled License Revoked, and a possible part in it for her. She presumably would`ve taken the role of"Pam" which eventually was given to American actress, Carey Lowell. The exact reason for Nielsen not getting the role is unknown.

Eric Clapton

Composer Michael Camen, Vic Flick, and Eric Clapton composed a song for use as the title song for Licence to Kill. They got as far as shooting footage for the music video before the song was eventually scrapped and replaced with Gladys Knight's version.

Vic Flick told 007Forever that Clapton presently has the only surviving copies of the song.

Rick Astley

Singer Rick Astley was at one time considered for the theme song of Licence to Kill. However, how seriously he was considered is unknown.

GOLDENEYE

Alan Rickman

Alan Rickman originally tested as James Bond in 1993, and by 1994, was reportedly offered the role of Alec Trevelyan. He was ready to do it, but changed his mind at the thought of being typecast as a megalomaniac. The role eventually went to Sean Bean, who had also screen tested a few times for the role of James Bond.

Colin Wells

Colin Wells was born in London in 1964. He became an actor after working in a bank and quickly found success in theatre. He worked extensively at the prestigious Glasgow Citizen`s Theatre ( alma mater of Sean Bean, Pierce Brosnan and others). Someone from EON saw Wells performance there and saw Colin receive a Best Actor award. His strong resemblance to the Bond character led to him being auditioned.

Colin worked steadily in TV with appearances in acclaimed mini-series such as An Independent Man and smash hits like Birds of a Feather. He was the romantic lead in The Hello Girls - a BBC drama set in the 50`s. Wells` character of Dick Mandeville, a wealthy womanizer who worked as an engineer for Rolls-Royce, was very similar to Bond.

Wells` first love remains theatre where, like Sean Connery and Timothy Dalton, he has often sought out challenging and intense roles. To most Bond fans however, Wells proved his credentials for the role of Bond with his portrayal of Sam Curtis in the modern remake of The Professionals- a lavish 13 part series filmed in Britain, the USA and South Africa. The series, sold to over 50 countries world wide and the spectacular action series (arranged by former 007 stuntman Peter Brayham and edited by 007 movie editor John Grover), called upon the actors to drive speedboats, Lotus sports cars, abseil down buildings, dogfight in helicopters and engage in some of the most vicious punch-ups and shootouts ever committed to celluloid.

Some sources claim that Wells is used by EON to read as Bond when other actors are screentested, although this has not been confirmed. Wells auditioned for the role of Bond in 1994.

Daniel Day Lewis

Daniel Day-Lewis was EON`s first choice to play Trevelyan in GoldenEye.

Eva Herzegovina

Supermodel Eva Herzegovina auditioned for the role of Natalya in GoldenEye. Her agent confirmed she screen tested three times for the role so it would seem like the producers were very interested in her.

Greg Wise

Greg Wise told The Express that he is flattered. "It would be great to do it. The producers saw me after Timothy Dalton left but I had these very unsexy sideburns for some period thing, which spoilt my chances."

Mel Gibson

Mel Gibson was first mentioned in connection with playing the role of James Bond when in 1992, producer Joel Silver made an attempt to buy the rights to James Bond. Silver went on record as saying he would cast his long time friend Mel Gibson as James Bond.

Major media outlets such as Entertainment Weekly and Newsweek also claimed that Albert R. Broccoli, then producer of the Bond films, waved an unconditional $20 million dollar paycheck in front of Gibson`s face to star as 007 in GoldenEye. According to the story, Gibson said the role: "Too frivolous". EON, on the other hand, has denied the incident ever took place.

The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones were asked to write/perform the theme song to GoldenEye, but turned the offer down possibly due to the tour they had coming up.

TOMORROW NEVER DIES

Pulp

Pulp submitted a song to the producers for consideration for Bond 18 (later officially titled Tomorrow Never Dies). The song, like so many others, was "rejected". But Pulp, being big Bond fans, were undeterred. They simply retitled the song "Tomorrow Never Lies" (which was incidentally the original title of the film until a typing error) and released it on their latest album.

Jon Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi was asked to submit a song for Bond 18, either by the producers or by David Arnold. Whether he did or not is unknown.

Julia Bremermann

The star of the British drama Space Island One was rumored to be in the running for Elliot Harmsway`s (last name later changed to Carver) wife in Tomorrow Never Dies. A member of Bondklub Deutschland (German Bond Club) spoke with Bremermann`s agency in Hamburg and they confirmed that she had a casting session for TND.

As a result Roger Spottiswoode wanted her to portray Elliot Harmsway`s German wife, a former serious love affair of Bond. But Spottiswoode wasn`t allowed to give her a contract when the producers and MGM/UA said Bremermann would be one German element too much (as they already had Hamburg as a location and Götz Otto as a henchman and BMW as Bond`s car). So she didn`t get the job and Spottiswoode was told to accept Teri Hatcher, which caused a lot of trouble between the director and the producers.

Sela Ward

While promoting her ABC show, Once and Again, Sela Ward revealed that she tried out for the role of Paris Carver in Tomorrow Never Dies. While she didn`t name the director, she was obviously talking about Roger Spottiswoode when she said, "The director told me they wanted the Sela Ward of 10 years ago."

The Chemical Brothers

The Chemical Brothers, perhaps best known for the dance single "Hey Boy, Hey Girl", were approached in or around March 1997 to gauge their interest in doing a high tech, dance re-mix of the James Bond theme. Apparently they were too busy to be able to do the theme so Moby, who had also been contacted at the same time, agreed to do the job.

THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH

Geri Halliwell

Geri Halliwell met with The World Is Not Enough director Michael Apted for the role of Dr. Christmas Jones. Her only explanation as to why she didn't get the role was,"things just didn`t work out"

Elizabeth Hurley

Actress/Supermodel Elizabeth Hurley was rumored to have been approached for a role in GoldenEye and ever since. She did present a 45 minute tribute to the James Bond series that aired in 1995 on the Fox network in the United States.

Javier Bardem

Javier Bardem was orignially offered the role of Renard in The World Is Not Enough. In the February 23rd, 2001 issue of Entertainment Weekly, Bardem tells reporter Steve Daly why he turned down Renard: "With all my respects....that is not the kind of thing I like to do. I want to be on risk. Otherwise this job has not a meaning."

Jeff Goldblum & Meatloaf

Apparently actor Jeff Goldblum and rockstar Meatloaf were being considered for roles in The World Is Not Enough. Whether this was true or just media speculation has yet to be determined.

Maria Grazia Cuccinotta

Michael Apted considered Italian actress Maria Grazia Cuccinotta for the role of Elektra, but deemed her grasp of the English language insufficient to carry the whole role. Instead, he gave her the role of Cigar Girl.

Monica Belluci

Belluci would have played Paris Carver in Tomorrow Never Dies had she gotten the chance. She screen tested for the part, and impressed Pierce Brosnan enough to be his choice. But executives at EON wanted a "name actress" so they hired Teri Hatcher instead. She may have been the number two choice on a short list of actresses to play the role but Roger Spottiswoode was quite high on having her play the part, and yet he was overruled by the studio.

Milla Jovovich

Milla Jovovich was born September 30th, 1968 in Perugia, Italy. In 1988 she began studying law but dropped her studies a year later to move to Milan where she became a model. She appeared in the 1992 Francis Ford Coppola film "Dracula", and was nominated for a Cesar as The Most Promising Actress 1996. Her name may have come up for consideration when the role of Elektra was in the early stages of being cast. As casting narrowed down to a conclusion, European news sources at the time indicated the role was down to two actresses: Milla Jovovich and Sophie Marceau. Sophie Marceau, the older looking and far more experienced actress, got the part.

JAMES BOND

The list includes numerous producers' candidates many of whom were not even considered worthy of a screentest!

1962 - Richard Johnson, Patrick McGoohan, Roger Moore, William Franklyn, Patrick Allen, Ian Hendry, Richard Burton

1967 - (Casino Royale) Laurence Harvey, William Holden, Peter O`Toole, Stanley Baker

1968 - Robert Campbell, Anthony Rogers, Hans De Vries, John Richardson, Roy Thinnes, Adam West

1971 - John Gavin, Simon Oates, John Ronane, Mike McStay, Michael Billington

1978 - David Warbeck, Oliver Tobias, Gordon Williams, Michael Billington
Gary Myers, Michael Petrovitch

1980 - Lewis Collins, David Warbeck, Michael Billington, David Robb,Michael Jayston, Ian Ogilvy, Nicholas Clay

1982 - James Brolin, Dave Warbeck

1984 - Lewis Collins, Anthony Andrews

1986 - Pierce Brosnan, Lewis Collins, Lambert Wilson, Sam Neill, Finlay Light, Andrew Clarke, Oliver Tobias, Simon McCorkindale, John James, Mel Gibson, Michael Praed, Mark Greenstreet, Neil Dickson, Anthony Andrews, Bryan Brown, Steve Adler, Ben Cross, Charles Dance, Tom Selleck, Michael Nader, Marcus Gilbert

1984 - (McClory`s SPECTRE) Lewis Collins, Sam Neill

1989 - (McClory`s Warhead 1989) Pierce Brosnan, Lewis Collins, Christian Burgess, Jason Connery

1994 - Clive Owen, Jeremy Northam, Greg Wise, Colin Wells, Ralph Fiennes, Mark Frankel, Jason Isaacs, Sean Bean, James Purefoy, Nathaniel Parker, Adrian Paul, Hugh Grant,

1999 - (Warhead) Liam Neeson, George Clooney.

1999 - (EON) Ioan Grofudd, Jonathan Cake, Linus Roache, Paul McGann

MOONRAKER

Carole Bouquet

Carole Bouquet may have tested for `Holly Goodhead` in Moonraker. Ironically, Lois Chiles first auditioned for `Anya Amasova` in The Spy Who Loved Me.

Shelly Hack

Shelly was under consideration for the role of 'Holly Goodhead' in Moonraker. She may have even been the leading contender at the time. Hack agreed to a screen test but a chance encounter between Lois Chiles and Director Lewis Gilbert took the casting in a different direction, and Chiles won the role.

Hack went on to do a season of Charlies` Angels as well as several film and television features.

James Mason

James Mason was, at one time, considered for the role of 'Hugo Drax' in Moonraker.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

For Your Eyes Only
Blondie
80`s punk band Blondie submitted a theme song for For Your Eyes Only. When the producers weren`t satisfied with the song and asked Blondie to record it again, they declined, so Sheena Easton recorded another version of the song. Blondie eventually released the song on their album `The Hunter.'

Michael Jayston

During Roger Moore's salary negotiations Michael Jayston was considered for the role of Bond.

OCTOPUSSY


Octopussy
James Brolin

James Brolin, star of "Hotel" and "Pensacola:Wings Of Gold," wasn`t just rumored to be the next James Bond, he was James Bond; for a day at least. He started off his long, weird odyssey towards 007 by screentesting with Maud Adams (ex-Andrea Anders), recreating the key seduction scene in From Russia, With Love, as well as another small scene with the actress who played Penelope Smallbone.

This occured after For Your Eyes Only had been released, but before Octopussy began filming. Roger Moore was holding out, having his customary contract wranglings with Cubby Broccoli. This time, Cubby was ready for it, having Brolin lined up and literally waiting to take over the part.

What about Brolin`s American accent? The conventional wisdom was that that part of Bond`s character would just be overlooked. According to several inside sources familiar with what happened at the time, Brolin was in a hotel in London, ready to begin filming at Pinewood the next day when Moore jumped back on board the project.

Brolin then went on to star in the highly successful ABC-TV series Hotel, which later guest starred Maud Adams.

Laura Branigan

A popular singer in the early 1980`s, she was a front runner to sing the theme song to Octopussy. Hot on the heels of her successful song "Gloria," various news reports stated she had been signed to do the theme song. Barbara Broccoli, however, was a big fan of Rita Coolidge`s work and efforts to get her to do the theme song paid off with "All Time High".

Persis Khambatta

Former Miss India and Miss Universe winner, Persis Khambatta, was, according to published reports at the time, being considered for the role of 'Octopussy.' The then 32 year old actress was eliminated from consideration as being an "obvious choice." She had previously starred in Star Trek: The Motion Picture as Ilia. She died suddenly in 1998 from a heart attack at her home in Bombay, India.

Sybil Danning and Faye Dunaway

Sybil Danning and Faye Dunaway were both considered for the title character in Octopussy. It`s doubtful that Dunaway would`ve seriously considered playing a Bond Girl at that point in her career, but Sybil Danning was ready for action.

Sybil Danning was B-movie actress quietly working her way up the ranks of Hollywood.

She was felt out in 1981 and 1982 to determine her interest in playing the title role in Octopussy. Before she even had the part, she was posing for fashion photographer Firooz Zahedi in extremely suggestive Bond-like publicity stills, almost all of which involved either some sort of leather get-up or black evening gown complimented with the obligatory handgun. She graced the cover of Prevue Magazine in the summer of 1982 wearing a vulcanized black leather swimsuit with the zipper drawn all the way to the navel to display her ample talents, and holding a gun with a caption that read: "SYBIL DANNING Will she make love or war to James Bond in OCTOPUSSY"?

The hype for Danning had already begun despite the fact that she hadn`t even signed a contract - but she apparently had gotten a look at the first draft.

"Most of the Bond girls are not really interesting", said Danning. "Octopussy has to be much, much more. She must be unpredictable and dangerous; neither Bond nor the audience must ever know what she`ll do next: betray him or befriend him. That`s what their story is really about".

Danning spoke too soon and the role was offered to Maud Adams.

Incidentally, Octopussy was not the first Bond movie she was up for. Danning was set to be cast in the role that Corrine Clery took in the 1979 film Moonraker, but because of a French cofinancing deal, that role was given to a native actress instead.

Grav. This is some fascinating stuff you've posted today. Thanks. :D Will certainly be giving those 007Forever pieces a read, too.

I had no idea that Alan Rickman tested for Bond. Of course, he could never have been cast in the role because, well, bluntly, he just wasn't handsome enough. I mean, he was hardly an ugly guy, far from it, and indeed he's extremely stylish in DIE HARD, and, sure, I know that loads of people claimed that Craig wasn't handsome enough, but Rickman lacked---- Well, he never had that hunkiness thing going on that Craig has. I dunno, though - maybe if Rickman had really hit the gym and caned the food and protein shakes, I don't know....

However, Rickman was absolutely on fire as an actor in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and I'd dearly love to see his Bond audition. I'm fascinated by what he could have brought to the table.

Oh, and Brigitte Nielsen as Pam Bouvier? I can't see it myself, but I do think Nielsen would have been the glaringly obvious choice for May Day - so glaringly obvious, indeed, that I'd be stunned if she hadn't been approached for A VIEW TO A KILL (she was at the peak of her fame then, I believe, having done RED SONJA and was co-starring with her then-partner Stallone in ROCKY IV - by contrast, in 1988 I think she was rather washed-up and I'm rather surprised that Eon considered her for the main Bond girl role in LICENCE REVOKED).

Belgium actor Jan Decleir be option to play Gubta. The part go to Ricky Jay. It is unknown or this be remour on not. But Jan Decleir be ask to play a villian for Twine, but he rejected because he prefer theater acting. Possible Decleir be ask for TMND to have someone from Beglium in the movie because there have German actors and 2 people from The Netherlands (Daphne Dekkers & Dicky Bear.).

Dapne Dekkers offical be ask to play Paris, the producers say to her she don't get the part but and give her the the part she playing.

Bjork be first choose to make the title song of TMND.

There be remour Apted and Garbage wil return for Bond 20.

Sharon Stone as Elektra

Ashley Judd to play a part in Die Another Day

Michelle Yeoh as Wailin return in Die Another Day

Dutch actor Tom Hofman did audition for QOS. Hofman be a choose to play Dominic (Confirmd). There also be people who said Carice van Houten get part in QOS but this not be confirmd.

Loomis wrote:

Grav. This is some fascinating stuff you've posted today. Thanks. :D Will certainly be giving those 007Forever pieces a read, too.

I had no idea that Alan Rickman tested for Bond. Of course, he could never have been cast in the role because, well, bluntly, he just wasn't handsome enough. I mean, he was hardly an ugly guy, far from it, and indeed he's extremely stylish in DIE HARD, and, sure, I know that loads of people claimed that Craig wasn't handsome enough, but Rickman lacked---- Well, he never had that hunkiness thing going on that Craig has. I dunno, though - maybe if Rickman had really hit the gym and caned the food and protein shakes, I don't know....

However, Rickman was absolutely on fire as an actor in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and I'd dearly love to see his Bond audition. I'm fascinated by what he could have brought to the table.

Oh, and Brigitte Nielsen as Pam Bouvier? I can't see it myself, but I do think Nielsen would have been the glaringly obvious choice for May Day - so glaringly obvious, indeed, that I'd be stunned if she hadn't been approached for A VIEW TO A KILL (she was at the peak of her fame then, I believe, having done RED SONJA and was co-starring with her then-partner Stallone in ROCKY IV - by contrast, in 1988 I think she was rather washed-up and I'm rather surprised that Eon considered her for the main Bond girl role in LICENCE REVOKED).

The idea of Brigitte Nielsen in A VIEW TO A KILL is an interesting one, but I like Grace Jones for several different reasons: she brought a fashion style and a look that Nielsen couldn't match, and I'm not one to care about fashion all that much; with May Day, Jones' bizarre fashion outfits helped add some mystique to a limited role. Secondly, Jones being black is a shocking and interesting contrast to Zorin's shock-blonde, of-Aryan-descent hair and skin tone. The fact that a prodigy of Nazi experimentation has not only a female bodyguard, but a tall black woman as well, brings a nice dichotomy to the film that Nielsen wouldn't.

I remember the rumors, or at lest one rumor, of Nielsen having lunch with Barbara Broccoli in the first half of '88, and it was apparently to discuss the Pam Bouvier role. Remember, she was also somewhat hot after Beverly Hill Cop II came out in the summer of '87.

As for Alan RIckman...it's been so long since I wrote these articles that I've lost track, in some cases, of the source of the information (long story). Don't think he would have been a good Bond; certainly a good villain, but sometimes you just can't top yourself. He ushered in a long line of copycat Euro-trash villains after DIE HARD came out and I think he wanted to avoid type-casting after DIE HARD as much as possible.

THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN

Alice Cooper

The album "Muscle of Love" contains the song he submitted to EON after they had invited him to do so. Cooper, a James Bond/John Barry fan, may have hoped EON was looking for another hard, Live and Let Die-style song for The Man With the Golden Gun, but they didn`t like Cooper`s offering and rejected it. Variations on the song have Liza Minnelli doing guest vocals.

Susan Penhaligon

Actress Susan Penhaligon told 007Forever that she auditioned for the role of "Mary Goodnight" in The Man With the Golden Gun.



THE SPY WHO LOVED ME

David Prowse

David Prowse was cast as `Jaws` by director Terence Young for The Spy Who Loved Me. When Young jumped ship and went on to try for Superman, Prowse went with him and Lewis Gilbert cast Richard Kiel instead. (NOTE: David Prowse was a costumed Darth Vader in the original Star Wars Trilogy)

Will Sampson

Perhaps best known for a role in One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest, Will Sampson, a 7 foot tall Native American actor, was approached to play "Jaws" in The Spy Who Loved Me. He also starred opposite Chuck Norris in Firestarter.

Lois Chiles

Actress Lois Chiles auditioned for the role of Anya Amasova in The Spy Who Loved Me. Actress Barbara Bach eventually won the role.

Sampson and Chiles would have worked.

Sharky wrote:

Sampson and Chiles would have worked.

Chiles and anything would have worked. Loved her then, love her now.

THUNDERBALL

Raquel Welch

Racquel Welch was actually signed for the role of Domino in Thunderball but, at the request of her agent, got out of the role at the last minute because she wanted to do a different project.

Yvonne Monlaur

French actress, Yvonne Monlaur, donned a black swimsuit and actually screentested for `Domino` in Thunderball. At the time she was famous for her superb performance in the Hammer horror classic "The Brides of Dracula."


ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE

Adam West

In Adam West's book, "Back to the Batcave," (Berkley Books, 1994), West briefly talks about his possible tenure as James Bond:

"Over a lovely dinner, Cubby asked me point-blank if I`d be interested in playing 007. Sean Connery had completed `You Only Live Twice` and said he wasn`t coming back, a talent search was proving unsuccessful, and it was getting close to the time when `On Her Majesty`s Secret Service` was due to begin production. Lew (Sherrell, West`s agent) nearly spit out his tea when a firm offer was made.

"I`ll have to admit I was tempted. There were three B`s that really made an impact on the 1960s: Bond, Batman and the Beatles. I had the chance to be two of them. The money would have been good, too. But the big problem, as I saw it, was that I wasn`t British. Of course I could have done the accent. But fans would have complained, and the British press would have been all over me. (As they were with Michael Keaton when `Batman` was shot in London. They`d decided he was all wrong for the part and hounded him mercilessly.)

"In this case, though, they would have been right. In my heart, I felt that Bond should definitely be played by an Englishman, and I said so. Cubby respected my stand, and I still think I did the right thing, especially when you consider how Australian George Lazenby got roasted for his one stab at the part."

Miscellaneous

Some other names that popped up during the producers' meetings are; Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Peter Snow (a BBC newsreader!), Robert Campbell, Hans de Vries, John Richardson and Anthony Rogers.


DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER

John Gavin

In 1970 Cubby Broccoli and Harry Saltzman found themselves with the daunting task of having to re-cast the role of 007 yet again. Lazenby had made it clear he wasn`t coming back and Connery`s antipathy towards the role was well known by this time. After numerous screen tests of lesser-known actors, Broccoli and Saltzman agreed upon one promising man: John Gavin.

Gavin was a former American naval intelligence officer whose film resume included work with Alfred Hitchcock (Psycho) and Stanley Kubrick (Spartacus), as well as a role in the French/Italian knockoff thriller OSS 117 DOUBLE AGENT (1967), where he co-starred alongside future Bond villain Curt Jurgens. After a successful screen test, Gavin was given a holding contract.

With one Bond waiting in the wings, United Artists executive David Picker made a personal, last-ditch effort to get Connery back by making an offer too good to resist. Connery accepted the offer and Gavin, though he never got the role, was paid $50,000.00 to compensate him for his trouble.
Miscellaneous

Some other names that popped up during the producers' meetings are; Burt Reynolds, Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, and Roger Moore

Gravity's Silhouette wrote:

Sharky wrote:

Sampson and Chiles would have worked.

Chiles and anything would have worked. Loved her then, love her now.

She's one hell of a MILF. Her University of Houston acting class students at were bloody lucky.

DR.NO

John Frankenheimer

John Frankenheimer, the director of such films as `Reindeer Games`, `The Manchurian Candidate` and `Ronin` has his own connection to the Bond world. He spoke with Oregon-based journalist Shawn Levy on a promotional tour for `Reindeer Games` and the subject of 007 came up.

SL: Here`s a crazy thought. Back in the `60s, were you ever approached to do a Bond movie?

JF: You know what? I was offered the role of James Bond in 1962. I was at a nightclub in London, and (Bond producer) Cubby Broccoli saw me. And I looked just like what Ian Fleming had written, and he asked me would I do it? And I turned him down. But I wouldn`t direct one. Those action sequences are bigger than life, and I don`t do action sequences that are bigger than life. You have to sublimate yourself to the style of the movie, and I can`t do that.

Ironically, his 1976 film BLACK SUNDAY appears to have inspired Michael G. Wilson and Richard Maibaum when writing LICENCE TO KILL. BLACK SUNDAY ends with Robert Shaw being lowered from a helicopter onto a blimp that is being piloted by terrorists. Shaw hooks the blimp to a cargo line and the blimp is pulled up and away from a stadium packed with Super Bowl attendees. In LICENCE TO KILL, Bond is lowered onto the back of a light airplane piloted by a drug czar, where he then hooks the plane to a fishing cable and the plane is pulled up and away to be reeled in like a fish.

Sir Michael Gambon & Patrick Mower

Sir Michael Gambon is a well respected star of stage and screen who has worked under the Artistic Directorship of Sir Laurence Olivier. and is considered to be one of the British theatre`s "leading lights". In an interview recorded on 7/11/2000, Sir Michael Gambon revealed that he had tested for the role of 007 in 1970.

Here is his account: "I had coffee and bagels in this house in Mayfair, then I had a nice chat with Cubby. He asked me to do various scenes and after each one he said `be more romantic`, `be more assertive` or whatever.

Eventually I said: "Y`know Cubby, it would help if I knew which part I was auditioning for". Cubby looked aghast and said "Bond of course". (gasps of disbelief from audience) I couldn`t believe it. It was ridiculous.

"But Cubby I`m bald!" "Doesn`t matter, so was Sean. We`ll just slap a wig on you". "But Cubby, I`ve got terrible teeth! My teeth are like a horses." "Doesn`t matter. We`ll take you to Harley Street...you`ll have a perfect smile by Friday". "But Cubby, I`m in terrible shape. I`ve got tits like a woman!" "Doesn`t matter. So had Sean. We used to wrap him in ice packs before every love scene."

Anyway Cubby talked for a while and eventually I was completely convinced that I had the part. I went bounding downstairs only to find 19 other actors there to audition as well."

Eventually Sir Michael revealed that Cubby`s first choice for the role was Patrick Mower, a young British actor. Patrick was 6`0" with black hair and blue eyes. Unfortunately after what Sir Michael described as "the George Lazenby fiasco", UA were opposed to hiring an unknown and went with John Gavin who was eventually replaced when Connery returned. Patrick Mower went on to huge success in Britain in the 70`s. He starred in several horror films (including the classic THE DEVIL RIDES OUT) where his suave yet sinister air was put to good use. When ITV had huge success with the tv series THE PROFESSIONALS, the BBC responded with TARGET which starred Mower as Steve Hackett of the Regional Crime Squad and his sidekick played by Jeremy Bulloch (Boba Fett).The series was a huge hit but was cancelled after 2 seasons when the BBC were criticised for its graphic depiction of violence.

Mower worked extensively and was recently starring as suave superspy Jason Dane in CI5:THE NEW PROFESSIONALS. He currently has a starring role in the British prime time soap EMMERDALE. I had the pleasure of seeing Patrick Mower on stage in WHO KILLED AGATHA CHRISTIE. Ironically his co-star was Lewis Collins who was also a frontrunner for Bond and is alleged to have been offered the role in AVTAK when Moore`s pay disputes appeared to have ground to a halt. Both men gave excellent performances and it is fascinating to note how the two stars reflected the direction that the Bond filmes were moving in: the dashing and urbane Mower was a sophisticated actor who would have been in the mould of The Saint and the witty 70`s movies while Collins was a tough brooding actor with a dry wit, which is surely similar to the Bond of the late 80`s.

As James Harris exclusively revealed a while ago at 007Forever....The Friday, June 22nd, 2001 edition of The Mirror reveals that he (Patrick Mower) lost out on the chance to play Bond 5 times:

Pat's comment: "...now we live in Lincolnshire where Anya keeps her horses. I have quite a lot of land, a tennis court, a snooker room and a river. To be honest I lead a pretty idyllic life. So bugger Bond.

Miscellaneous

Other names that had cropped up in producers' meetings for the role of James Bond include; William Franklyn, Patrick McGoohan, Roger Moore and Michael Craig.

GOLDFINGER

Theodore Bikel

Harry Saltzman originally wanted him to play Auric Goldfinger. Gert Frobe got the role. Theodore Bikel, an internationally beloved actor and singer, is a true renaissance man of the arts. He is best known to the world-at-large for his starring Broadway roles in "The Sound of Music" and most famously as Tevye in "Fiddler on the Roof" and in films like "The African Queen," "My Fair Lady" and "The Defiant Ones."

Gravity's Silhouette wrote:

THUNDERBALLRaquel Welch

Racquel Welch was actually signed for the role of Domino in Thunderball but, at the request of her agent, got out of the role at the last minute because she wanted to do a different project.

She wanted to molested by antibodies and groped for by a team of male scientists in FANTASTIC VOYAGE instead. She made the right choice.

CASINO ROYALE

Angelina Jolie, Charlize Theron, and Rachel McAdams: I believe Angelina may have been given a firm contract offer, but turned it down. I don't know how far the other two names got, though I don't see Charlize Theron as having ever been a viable candidate, as doing a Bond pic doesn't seem to be something she's interested in. In fact, I'd consider her to be the female equivalent of Johnny Depp: likes quirky, off-beat roles and you can never tell what she'll accept and what she'll reject.

Rachel McAdams, on the other hand, may have gone as far as auditioning, but I can't say for certain. She certainly had the most of the three to gain by taking the role. Personally, I would have liked to see Angelina do the role because she was at the peak of her physical perfection at the time the search was going on (and of course she's a very good actress as well). However, Eva Green did a great job in the role and was probably the best part of CR.


There are a few films for which I apparently never came across rumors of anyone else being considered or having auditioned for a role: FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE, DIE ANOTHER DAY and QUANTUM OF SOLACE. If anyone has any information on those films please feel free to add it to this list.