The men who nearly became Bond.

[adam]

Dispite the media drumming up dozens of 'new Bonds' over the years, there has'nt been many actors that have come close. How would the nearly men have faired ?

Cary Grant:

Apparantly the first choice who turned it down. At 57 Bond would have been less tough, physical and sexual. However Grant was in good shape for his age. His voice did'nt have the Connery/Moore power and I dread to think what Bond would have turned into if he had made five or six and carried on into his 60's. A Patrick Mcnee esq 'Avengers' type Bond perhaps ?


John Gavin:

Not much is known about him. But he was actually Bond for a short while. Brocoli and Salzman knew they were taking another huge risk after Lazenby flopped. However Connery was'nt playing ball until finally accepting his record breaking fee. Gavin graciously stepped down. Is dark in the Connery mode but nowhere near as handsome, rugged or dangerous looking.


James Brolin:

First tested in 79 after impressing in 'Capricorn One'. Dark, with a strong American accent and at 6.4 would have been the tallest Bond. Actually became Bond for one day in 1983 at the age of 45 which shows age was'nt a massive thing for Brocoli. Never seen him in a comedy so maybe Bond would have become more serious.


Michael Billington:

Apparantly screen tested more times than any other actor throughout the 70's and 80's, making his final screen test in 1983. Made a cameo appearance in TSWLM where I thought he looked like a potential Bond. However rumours he wore a syrup put me off.


Clive Owen:

Has claimed he turned down the part. Was a long term favourite with the media and Bond fans especially after 2002. Tall, dark and good looking. A bit of bodybuilding and slicked back hair would have made him a great Bond.


Sam Worthington:

Has recently also claimed he turned down the part. Not sure about that but he was definatly in the final three. An unknown in 2005, was the right age, handsome and dark. Has shown he can play the tough leading man roles. However is under 6 feet and is not British.

[Jake]

Michael Billington did wear a slightly obvious syrup but he had quite a good look. Sam Neil is a name to add to this list. You can see his actual James Bond screentest for Eon on The Living Daylights DVD. He was apparently all but cast as the new 007 but then Cubby got cold feet and went back to speak to Timothy Dalton again. I think Neil would have been ok but Dalton was a more interesting choice.

[FormerBondFan]

May 17, 2010 18:18:45 GMT -5 Jake said:

Michael Billington did wear a slightly obvious syrup but he had quite a good look. Sam Neil is a name to add to this list. You can see his actual James Bond screentest for Eon on The Living Daylights DVD. He was apparently all but cast as the new 007 but then Cubby got cold feet and went back to speak to Timothy Dalton again. I think Neil would have been ok but Dalton was a more interesting choice.

Tim looks younger than Sam yet he's a year older than him.

[harrypalmer]

Pierce Brosnan nearly joined this list. He was lucky to get a second chance!

John Gavin had a great look, but Sir Roger was needed to relaunch Bond and give it a life after Sean.

Mike Billington would have been fine if UFO is anything to go by. Brolin is much maligned but would have been a fun Bond.

[adam]

Just had a look at John Gavin. He did have matinee idol dark good looks. However there were dozens of those sorts of actors around at that time. To me he looked a bit bland. Whether that would have changed once he was in a Bond movie, we'll never know.

After Lazenby flopped, big name actors were probably reluctant to risk becoming Bond and failing. Therefore Brocoli/Salzman had no choice but to appoint the unknown Gavin. They were obviously not confident or they would'nt have offerred Connery his record breaking fee.

After DAF did good business it seems that Brocoli/Salzman thought the time was right to try to land a big name American star. There have always been rumours about Redford, Newman and Reynolds. Recently Robert Wagner and even Clint Eastwood both claimed to have turned down the part in the early 70's. Roger Moore was well known in the states from his T.V. work and was eventually chosen.

[Greg Haugen]

John Gavin certainly looked like Bond.

[drfanshawe]

May 19, 2010 13:46:17 GMT -5 Greg Haugen said:

John Gavin certainly looked like Bond.

Actors use to be considered for Bond because of their look and not their acting skills. Daniel Craig looks nothing like Bond but is supposed to be a great actor. I don't think Bond demands a great actor, especially Quantum of Solace where Bond did not say much.

[adam]

Did'nt know Sam Neill was so close. He was always mentioned as a possibility in the mid 80's but never a bookies favourite. I like him as an actor but was never a big fan of him becoming Bond. Perhaps not darkly handsome enough, however I'm sure he would have done a good job.

[FormerBondFan]

May 20, 2010 16:08:50 GMT -5 adam said:

Did'nt know Sam Neill was so close. He was always mentioned as a possibility in the mid 80's but never a bookies favourite. I like him as an actor but was never a big fan of him becoming Bond. Perhaps not darkly handsome enough, however I'm sure he would have done a good job.

Who looks more Bondian? Sam Neil or Steven Seagal.

[FormerBondFan]

May 17, 2010 18:00:02 GMT -5 adam said:

Sam Worthington:

Has recently also claimed he turned down the part. Not sure about that but he was definatly in the final three. An unknown in 2005, was the right age, handsome and dark. Has shown he can play the tough leading man roles. However is under 6 feet and is not British.

Worthington was born British.

[Gambit]

So Sam can probably do the accent then?

[alvin]

I looked at all those photos of actors that were up for the part. That style of look they had is old fashioned. That's old time stuff from my parents time. Bond has to be modern and progressive, so that's why daniel Craig is awesome because he understood that Bond has to be a modern metrosexual man that can express his inner feelings. Bond is no longer that rude playboy, that's how my classmates put it. We all believe that Daniel is in touch with our modern time and has brought social justice to the role. No one is excluded now, Bond is for everyone, even for sensitive men and gays and feminists.

[adam]

I did'nt see DC express his 'inner feelings' much in QOS.

[009]

Sam Neil said he didn't like his Bond screentest apparently.

[009]

James Purefoy would have made a great Bond.