James Bond could come to Australia, if actor Daniel Craig has his way

Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
edited January 2012 in News Posts: 13,350
Craig is keen to make a film Down Under and likes the idea of finally bringing agent 007 to Australia.

Despite his globe-trotting exploits, the fictional MI6 spy has never travelled to the wide brown land in the 50 years since first hitting screens in Dr No.

"I would love to shoot in Australia. That is just me," Craig said. "Whether Bond goes there or not, I could not tell you, but I personally would love to shoot in Australia."

Australia is not without its connections to 007 - NSW-born George Lazenby played Bond in On Her Majesty's Secret Service in 1969.

Craig is busy filming his third Bond film Skyfall, the 23rd in the franchise. start of production.

Spanish star Javier Bardem will play the chief villain.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/entertainment/movies/you-bewdy-james-bond/story-e6frf9h6-1226235956716
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Comments

  • Posts: 11,189
    That would be quite cool. Maybe they could convince George to do a SUBTLE cameo as he's the Bond most people forget.
  • Posts: 1,856
    Pffffft Australia, you'll have to at least throw in New Zealand as well Dan! ;)
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 23,449
    It strikes me as rather incredible that over a span of nearly fifty years, the cinematic James Bond never ever set foot on Australia, a country with tremendous opportunities, IMO, for a James Bond film. Even Ethan Hunt beat him to it. I definitely hope we get there any time soon.
  • Posts: 12,506
    I would like to see this happen! How about the Quantum HQ under Ayre's Rock! How iconic would that be! ;)
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    Posts: 13,350
    With Wilson and co. always listening to Craig's views, this could well happen in one of these films. As soon as Bond 24 though? I don't know.
  • Posts: 612
    I'd love to see Bond come to Canada. There is a lot happening here, with Chinese espionage and all.
  • Posts: 12,506
    ooooh do tell us more? I always thought they would make a new modern day cold war theme for Bond!
  • Posts: 5,745
    I'd love to see Bond come to Canada. There is a lot happening here, with Chinese espionage and all.

    Whaa? Elaborate please.
  • Posts: 12,506
    canada?!!!!! Where are you?!!!! I think the chinese have struck? B-)
  • Posts: 9,731
    Australia for Bond 24 I'm ok with that.
  • Posts: 1,894
    I'm only interested in Australia appearing if it fits the demands of the story. Shoe-horning it in is not an option. And as it stands, Australia doesn't hold much weight geopolitically. So unless BOND 24's story revolves around the Gillard government's policy on asylum seekers, I don't think there is much that can be done.

    Besides, I suspect this story came from a journalist asking him about Bond coming to Australia during promotions for TINTIN or DRAGON TATTOO, and Craig was just being diplomatic about it.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    edited January 2012 Posts: 15,686
    I'm only interested in Australia appearing if it fits the demands of the story.

    Who cares about plot in Bond films ? Australia needs to feature in a future outing - it's exotic and never seen before in the franchise... And of course it needs to be a major location, so I wont accept anything less than 1 hour of screentime for Australia in the outing Bond will visit it. Locations (2 or 3 per film) is much more important than plot. Locations : as important as characters, humour and atmosphere. Plot : useless.
  • Posts: 1,894
    Who cares about plot in Bond films ?
    Well, considering that the plot is the thing that binds the entire film together, I'd say most people care about it. Without the plot, there is no need for a film. At the very least, the plot provides a reason for Bond to visit the far-flung locales you so highly prize.
    Australia needs to feature in a future outing - it's exotic and never seen before in the franchise...
    It's not exotic. We don't have anything of interest here. What possible reason would Bond have for visiting Australia? Julia Gillard's policies on asylum seekers? Stopping Japanese whaling vessels? Preventing the theft of the Sydney Harbour Bridge? Thwarting an assassination attempt on Oprah?
    And of course it needs to be a major location, so I wont accept anything less than 1 hour of screentime for Australia in the outing Bond will visit it. Locations (2 or 3 per film) is much more important than plot. Locations : as important as characters, humour and atmosphere. Plot : useless.
    You wouldn't happen to be the producer of one of thsoe holiday shows like "Getaway" or "The Great Outdoors", would you? Because with your over-insistence of turning Bond into a travelogue, I'm beginning to suspect that's what you do for a living.
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    Posts: 13,350
    Please. Do. Not. Start. Another. Fight.

    Thank you.
  • Posts: 5,745
    Perhaps Bonds villain resides in Australia as an asylum seeker. :P

    To stay off the beaten (to a pulp) path of, I dunno, Istanbul.
  • Posts: 1,894
    Samuel001 wrote:
    Please. Do. Not. Start. Another. Fight.

    Thank you.
    I'm not looking to. I'm just pointing out that there is no reason for Bond to come to Australia. We don't have anything that would fit a Bond film, unless you want something totally generic like MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 2, with Bond coming to Australia for scenes that could take place in any other country in the world.
    JWESTBROOK wrote:
    Perhaps Bonds villain resides in Australia as an asylum seeker. :P
    Well, he wouldn't be too villainous, then - he'd be locked up in mandatory detention for processing.
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    edited January 2012 Posts: 13,350
    Samuel001 wrote:
    Please. Do. Not. Start. Another. Fight.

    Thank you.
    I'm not looking to. I'm just pointing out that there is no reason for Bond to come to Australia. We don't have anything that would fit a Bond film, unless you want something totally generic like MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 2, with Bond coming to Australia for scenes that could take place in any other country in the world.

    I know you're not and personally I agree with you. It's just you and DC together, often doesn't work out well, as you know. Just wait for his reply.

    What happens after that is what I'm trying to avoid, for all our sakes.
  • Posts: 1,894
    Samuel001 wrote:
    Just wait for his reply.
    With baited breath.

    Being Australian, I have knowledge of Australia. And I have enough knowledge to know that there is nothing for Bond here, unless, as I said, you want to get into generics. How DC chooses to react to that is entirely up to him.
  • Posts: 5,745
    JWESTBROOK wrote:
    Perhaps Bonds villain resides in Australia as an asylum seeker. :P
    Well, he wouldn't be too villainous, then - he'd be locked up in mandatory detention for processing.

    I was actually serious. Perhaps for Quantum's finale, the Leader resides in Australia because, well, there's not much to call attention to him/her there. Bond tracks, kills, and get information as he moves his way up the hierarchy of Quantum, which leads him to the finale in Australia.

    There's, of course, the Sydney opera house, and we know how much Quantum likes operas, the bridge NEXT to the opera house, Ayers rock, Flinder's Street Train Station, Sydney Parliament, and Wilpena Pound.

    Any/multiple of those could make for a good finale. And an iconic end to Quantum taking place in the one location Bond has never been.
  • Posts: 1,894
    But that's your whole generic plot line, like MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 2. Whatever happens in the story could reasonably happen anywhere on earth.




    Also, let it be known that anybody who suggests Bond visit 'the Outback' gets punched.
  • Posts: 4,619
    Who cares about plot in Bond films ?

    That explains everything. :) Now I know why you prefer shitty Bond films to CR.
  • Posts: 5,745
    But that's your whole generic plot line, like MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 2. Whatever happens in the story could reasonably happen anywhere on earth.

    Well, the head of Quantum could be a member of Sydney's Parliament.

    That could still go with any country, but I'm trying!

    Tell me shadow, why NOT do it for the sake of the location?
  • edited January 2012 Posts: 1,894
    JWESTBROOK wrote:
    Well, the head of Quantum could be a member of Sydney's Parliament.
    Well, yes, I suppose that's technically true - but the New South Wales state government is probably the msot incompetent government in the country. And incompetent governments are apparently in vogue right now. So the idea that the leader of a clandestine organisation that has organised multiple coups around the world, mislead intelligence agencies and stayed anonymous for years is a member of a government that cannot tell up from down is a little ludicrous.
    JWESTBROOK wrote:
    Tell me shadow, why NOT do it for the sake of the location?
    Because then you just turn Bond into a travelogue. It will stop being a case of "Bond has to be here because it fits the film" and starts being a case of "Bond has to be here because he hasn't gone there before".
  • edited January 2012 Posts: 92
    Firstly, I am Australian. Want proof? G'day. See?

    As much as it'd be fun to have Bond come to my country, I cannot for the life of me think of a convincing reason why Bond would need to come out here. Opal smuggling? Too close to DAF. Something wrong with the coal industry? Not sure why Bond would bother. We've done a decent job of avoiding the worst of the Global Financial Crisis, what crime could be invented from that?

    Secondly, we need a decent landmark that stands out from everywhere that Bond has been before. Maybe if he ends up fighting the bad guy on top of the Sydney harbour bridge (sound famililar?) What if we have him coming out of the surf at Manly or Bondi beach (sound familiar?) And that's just in Sydney. Melbourne, an infinitely better city
    ;) has much more culture but no amazing landmark. Flinders Street station COULD be used, maybe if he's chasing someone. Fed Square is plain ugly. God help him if he falls into the Yarra (it's a DIRTY river). If we wanted to go fantastical, someone could've turned the Royal Botanic Gardens into some huge poisonous place like in the YOLT book. But again, why would Bond bother?

    That leaves the great rock- Uluru. But the Aborigines don't like people climbing on it and, again, what possible reason would there be for Bond to travel there?

    I'm sure the producers have considered Australia but I believe it's too difficult to come up with a convincing reason for Bond to travel here. He'd probably be better off going to Malaysia or Indonesia. Or NZ if something is amiss in the wool trade...
  • a fight on top of the sydney opera house might be interesting?
  • edited January 2012 Posts: 5,745
    Okay, as far as a reason for Bond to venture into the heart of Australia:

    Bond 24. Quantum's head is in Australia. Bond discovers this in the last half hour of the film.

    The buildup. Mr. White, being successfully tracked by the MI6, turns up in a meeting with Chinese diplomats in Stockholm, Sweden, through a Swedish bank. As Mr. Whites accomplice discusses the deal with the Chinese diplomats, Mr. White steps out and answers his phone. Moments after he steps out, flash-bangs explode the room into a fit of confusion, and Mr. White B-lines it down some stairs and out back. He quickly hops in his Jag parked down a block, where he is met with an uncomfortably familiar voice of Bond sitting in his back seat, gun pressed against White's neck. That wraps the PTS. After the PTS there is a humorous scene where White is sitting, alone, in a blaring white room staring at a two way wall-mirror. On the other side we see M, talking to White through microphone as he smirks at the extra security. Nothing is learned from the conversation when suddenly he is jolted to a stiffened seizure and rolls over in chair, dead. Someone had slipped him a time-release tablet of something on his way in, probably one of the guards.

    White's phone is traced back to more Chinese contacts. Info learned from the Chinese diplomats at the meeting and their backgrounds show they are deep in the Chinese government.

    The film progresses.

    Finally Bond comes accross something that reveals the head of Quantum to him. Quantum's main goal, as it turns out, is to hold the world for ransom on as many raw materials as possible. The Chinese currently invest approxamately 22 Billion AUD a year in Australia's resources. The head of Quantum controls 3/4 of AUS mining exports and agricultural companies, and mainly deals with the Chinese. Oh yea and controls most of the ports and harbors of Australia while they're at it. Oh noes. Bond has to stop them.

    Epic climax on Sydney Bridge and something interesting in Melbourne, and epic finale kills off head of Quantum.







    For now. :>
  • Posts: 1,492
    I'm only interested in Australia appearing if it fits the demands of the story. Shoe-horning it in is not an option. And as it stands, Australia doesn't hold much weight geopolitically. So unless BOND 24's story revolves around the Gillard government's policy on asylum seekers, I don't think there is much that can be done.

    .

    I sort of agree with this.

    The best locations were necessary to the story because the story could only occur there such as Istanbul in FRWL or Berlin in OP or believe it or not San Francisco in AVTAK. Australia is so far away from the worlds geopolitics that it would be hard coming up with something viable. The germ manufacture plot of Mission Impossible II could have been placed in Essex or New Jersey. Australia was a cinematic backdrop.

    The only story I can come up with is that they are mining Uranium up at Kakadu NP in the Northern Territory. A heist plot where Quantum gets its hands on raw plutonium and sells to process it somewhere out near Kata Tijuca could work. But its not a very political story.

    Maybe a spy satellite plunges into the Coral sea and we get a salvage story ala FYEO. But doing something political like TLD or OP just wouldnt work for Australia.

    Although I do seem to remember a plot about Irma Bunt breeding plague rats out in the Outback somewhere. Was that a Benson story? or a RPG? I cant remember.



  • Posts: 1,894
    I can't think of anything Australia-specific unless it's something like a Pakistani cricketer claiming political asylum during a test match in Australia because he knows something damaging. Like Zulqarnain Haider who disappeared during a tour of South Africa and showed up in London, asking for asylum because he claimed he was being pressured by book keepers from a "mafia-like betting syndicate" into fixing a match. Why MI6 might be investigating an online betting consortium is beyond me, but it does make me think of Daniel Tzvetfoff, who got himself arrested for money laundering after being caught up in the Full Tilt Poker affair. He's currently believed to be in witness protection.

    But I think a cricket player claiming asylum in Australia in exchange for information about a threat to a person of interest in an ongoing investigation is a bit convoluted.
  • BennyBenny In the shadowsAdministrator, Moderator
    Posts: 14,811
    As I live in Perth, I think it only apt that Bond should come here.
    Although Melbourne and Sydney have a much larger population, Perth is a city of over one million, and the worlds most isolated city. How about a story that uses a terrorist organisation (think Spectre or Quantum) who having commited several smaller terror acts around the world, plant a nuclear device in Perth to demonstrate their power. By turning Perth into a crater.
    Okay so it would need work, but there's a reason for Bond to come to Australia. It would also be more unique, than using the Sydney harbour bridge / Opera house as a backdrop.
  • I just remembered we have the Great Barrier Reef! It's been a while since Bond scuba dived. No idea what the reason would be to be out there but it'd look good on screen. Except for the parts that are suffering from bleaching due to global warming :(
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