Who should/could be a Bond actor?

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  • MalloryMallory Do mosquitoes have friends?
    Posts: 2,057
    talos7 wrote: »
    Prior to casting Daniel, Barbara said that hundreds of candidates were considered; but she also said that from the beginning, Craig was the only one she wanted. Of course I’m paraphrasing, but there seems to be a disconnect.

    Does EON put out a casting call or do they int call in those who the want to evaluate?

    I doubt it is a casting call. Every male actor would respond to it 😂

    My guess is they maintain an ongoing shortlist and once they have decided the general direction they want to take the series in, they will then align that with their list at the time and go from there.
  • VenutiusVenutius Yorkshire
    Posts: 2,928
    Mallory wrote: »
    My guess is they maintain an ongoing shortlist and once they have decided the general direction they want to take the series in, they will then align that with their list at the time and go from there.

    Makes perfect sense - surely this will be close to the way it works?

  • MakeshiftPythonMakeshiftPython “Baja?!”
    Posts: 8,025
    talos7 wrote: »
    Prior to casting Daniel, Barbara said that hundreds of candidates were considered; but she also said that from the beginning, Craig was the only one she wanted. Of course I’m paraphrasing, but there seems to be a disconnect.

    Does EON put out a casting call or do they int call in those who the want to evaluate?

    Craig was probably her favorite, but it’s always smart to keep your options open and view others. IIRC, the four finalists that got screen tested including Craig were Henry Cavill, Sam Worthington, and Alex O'Loughlin.
  • VenutiusVenutius Yorkshire
    Posts: 2,928
    Yes, she'd clearly got her heart set on Craig but kept some options open, just in case he didn't work out as hoped. We know now that it turned out brilliantly, but Craig could be a bit of a troublesome character in those days - he refused to follow some of Campbell's suggestions during the screentests and left halfway through the day because he couldn't be bothered with it any further, he spurned questions and swore at the first press conference, etc - so there were no guarantees. Wise to have fallback options.
  • cwl007cwl007 England
    Posts: 611
    There are clearly some interesting names suggested. In fact I'd say it's a more suitable and varied group of potential Bonds than we had pre Craig.
    However in my mind I still keep going back to Michael Fassbender as the best candidate. He is still ONLY 44, younger than Moore in LALD. As a 44 year old myself that doesn't feel old (also it means I'd get just one more Bond who isn't younger than me!😅)
    He still looks good, great actor, big enough shoulders to carry the series post Craig and if the powers that be pull there finger out he could get a trio of films.
    #Iliveinhope
  • weboffearweboffear Scotland
    Posts: 48
    I am going to suggest Australian actor Alex Russell , you'll know him from the tv show SWAT , if he can do a British accent as well as he can do an American one worth a screentest , probably an outside possibility
  • ImpertinentGoonImpertinentGoon Everybody needs a hobby.
    Posts: 1,351
    An interesting wrinkle is that Craig was cast in a time pre-Twitter, pre-Facebook being widely available and pre-iPhone; meaning the information landscape was dramatically different. Eon could most-likely just fly in whomever they wanted for a screentest and nobody would be the wiser. Today, you have people following every move of every person involved in their favourite franchise by the minute on social media (well, the Bond fandom is pretty tame in that respect, but we'll see how it goes). Leaking photos and such has become much easier and they travel much further before EON PR and Legal can get a handle on it.
    I don't even know what that means exactly, but I'm pretty sure the process will be different from what it was 17 years ago.

    Somebody up for a stake-out at the entrance of Pinewood (or whereever they do screentests)?
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    Posts: 5,869
    I sometimes do some work there so I'll keep an eye out @ImpertinentGoon ;)
    As for your mention of social media, it's gonna be really interesting but also kind of sad in a way. We thought the treatment of Craig was bad, this next guy is gonna really get it in terms of opinion, speculation, and judgement. Even if a great and popular choice.
  • ImpertinentGoonImpertinentGoon Everybody needs a hobby.
    Posts: 1,351
    Denbigh wrote: »
    I sometimes do some work there so I'll keep an eye out @ImpertinentGoon ;)
    As for your mention of social media, it's gonna be really interesting but also kind of sad in a way. We thought the treatment of Craig was bad, this next guy is gonna really get it in terms of opinion, speculation, and judgement. Even if a great and popular choice.

    Yeah, keeping the casting secret is one thing. The reaction is a whole other. I'm sure some of the stuff the new guy will have to face will make CraigNotBond look like a tame joke. On the other hand, stars are way more used to there just always being some people who want to tear them down, so hopefully they won't have to take it as hard personally as Craig did. But it is really sad, that we can be pretty sure whoever it may be will face at least a base level of harassment online, just because that is the way social media works.
  • VenutiusVenutius Yorkshire
    edited February 2022 Posts: 2,928
    Some of them would at least escape the intense personal kicking that Craig got when he was first cast - eg. no one would be able to say that Aidan Turner 'doesn't even look like James Bond' or 'looks more like Red Grant than Bond' or was too short or too blond, etc. As it turned out over the years, general audiences seemed to have a deep love for Craig as Bond and unless the new guy hits it out of the park, one of the biggest beatdowns he'll face will probably be negative comparisons with Craig. Funny how things change, eh?
  • JeremyBondonJeremyBondon Seeking out odd jobs with Oddjob @Tangier
    edited February 2022 Posts: 1,318
    Venutius wrote: »
    Some of them would at least escape the intense personal kicking that Craig got when he was first cast - eg. no one would be able to say that Aidan Turner 'doesn't even look like James Bond' or 'looks more like Red Grant than Bond' or was too short or too blond, etc. As it turned out over the years, general audiences seemed to have a deep love for Craig as Bond and unless the new guy hits it out of the park, one of the biggest beatdowns he'll face will probably be negative comparisons with Craig. Funny how things change, eh?

    I was fed up with Craig for quite a while and was 'one of those' people who was against his casting. However that never changed. As an actor he isn't my cup of tea anyway. The only Bond film I truly love with him is CR and that wasn't because of him, but because of Campbell.

    Then again I'm not part of the general mainstream audience, like all of us basically, on mi6.
  • VenutiusVenutius Yorkshire
    edited February 2022 Posts: 2,928
    Yeah, exactly - that's why I made the mainstream audience point. I'm sure most of us here will give NewBond a fair go and judge him on his own merits, even if our own favourite doesn't get the nod. I think it'll be a more general audience that'll carp about him not being as good as Craig. Assuming he isn't, that is! ;)
  • MalloryMallory Do mosquitoes have friends?
    Posts: 2,057
    Watching Tom Bateman in Death On The Nile... yeah, I could see that.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 14,957
    Venutius wrote: »
    Some of them would at least escape the intense personal kicking that Craig got when he was first cast - eg. no one would be able to say that Aidan Turner 'doesn't even look like James Bond' or 'looks more like Red Grant than Bond' or was too short or too blond, etc. As it turned out over the years, general audiences seemed to have a deep love for Craig as Bond and unless the new guy hits it out of the park, one of the biggest beatdowns he'll face will probably be negative comparisons with Craig. Funny how things change, eh?

    Yes I think there will be a lot of 'he's not as good Craig' both before and after the film is released.
    I would imagine that Craig casts a long shadow which may even put off many actors to be honest.
  • VenutiusVenutius Yorkshire
    edited February 2022 Posts: 2,928
    Yes - one of the reasons Dalton gave for originally turning down the role was because he thought it'd be 'a really dumb idea' to try to follow Connery. I know he was young at the time, but if someone like Dalton can get that daunted, others certainly can. Following Craig is going to be the hardest job in Bond since then, so I wouldn't be surprised if the size of the task and the likely onslaught of 'he's not as good as...' is a deterrent to some.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    edited February 2022 Posts: 14,957
    In many ways the kindest thing Roger ever did to his successor was staying on too long: his age had become a bit of a joke so people were up for a younger and fresher Bond by the time he'd decided to leave. If he had left right at the top of his powers, say around the Gilbert films, his successor might've had a tougher time.

    Unfortunately (for his successor!) Craig didn't fade away but left as strong as he started, and bear in mind the guys looking at taking over will perhaps be in their early or mid-thirties, which means Craig has been Bond since Bond#7 was in his teens. Craig is pretty much the only Bond they'll have known (obviously the old ones are on telly, but they never have as much resonance as your Bond), and he'll likely be the best Bond ever in their eyes. That's a daunting prospect.
  • VenutiusVenutius Yorkshire
    Posts: 2,928
    Absolutely - no pressure then! ;)
  • BennyBenny In the shadowsAdministrator, Moderator
    Posts: 14,879
    It's a tough call. For the next actor, he doesn't want to be compared to Craig. But at the same time needs to be a decent actor who can possibly be compared to the likes of Craig and Connery. (As far as the press and general audience see the best Bonds)
    EON could go with an actor who is quite the opposite to Craig, and play it safe. But then will they want to revert back to the same old paint by numbers Bond?
    Read the lines, save the day and get the girl. It also depends on the direction they take the series, who the director and writers are. Will it be an over the top adventure, with outlandish villains, or a more grounded spy thriller, with a few implausible action set pieces?
    Glad I'm not the one who has to cast Bond #7.
  • LucknFateLucknFate 007 In New York
    Posts: 1,430
    Benny wrote: »
    It's a tough call. For the next actor, he doesn't want to be compared to Craig. But at the same time needs to be a decent actor who can possibly be compared to the likes of Craig and Connery. (As far as the press and general audience see the best Bonds)
    EON could go with an actor who is quite the opposite to Craig, and play it safe. But then will they want to revert back to the same old paint by numbers Bond?
    Read the lines, save the day and get the girl. It also depends on the direction they take the series, who the director and writers are. Will it be an over the top adventure, with outlandish villains, or a more grounded spy thriller, with a few implausible action set pieces?
    Glad I'm not the one who has to cast Bond #7.

    I think skewing young and unknown will also help suspend a lot of doubt and give them the entire press program to build up the new guy before anyone can have a fair say, as long as the look is right. Whatever happens, I'm almost positive they would never go with anyone that already had a strong, even divisive public opinion established, like Cavill or even Dornan.
  • ImpertinentGoonImpertinentGoon Everybody needs a hobby.
    Posts: 1,351
    There is the possibility that they go with a kind of "stop-gap" actor for now, basically to cleanse the palette after Craig. I've even seen people (on whose opinion I wouldn't put a lot of money, but still) arguing to just let Elba do a one-and-done so that story is finally put to rest and then go find someone a bit further out from Craig's shadow. Barbara Broccoli also talks about Craig and his successor in a way that insinuates that she really can't see anyone else in the role at the moment, which is worrying. Amazon will want a film sooner or later, so they can't just let the whole thing rest for five years and then see where they stand, but maybe there is worth in casting f.e. Fassbender specifically for one film, give a director like Boyle or Fukunaga or someone else adventurous more leeway than they normally would and just have them do one story and that's it.
  • Venutius wrote: »
    Yes - one of the reasons Dalton gave for originally turning down the role was because he thought it'd be 'a really dumb idea' to try to follow Connery. I know he was young at the time, but if someone like Dalton can get that daunted, others certainly can. Following Craig is going to be the hardest job in Bond since then, so I wouldn't be surprised if the size of the task and the likely onslaught of 'he's not as good as...' is a deterrent to some.

    I'm not sure about that. I don't think actors of today really have that concern. If anything, if actors aren't lobbying for the role they're hoping and praying they get it. Craig was good but not great enough to scare off prospects from wanting to take on the role.
  • edited February 2022 Posts: 784
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  • Posts: 14,831
    Benny wrote: »
    It's a tough call. For the next actor, he doesn't want to be compared to Craig. But at the same time needs to be a decent actor who can possibly be compared to the likes of Craig and Connery. (As far as the press and general audience see the best Bonds)
    EON could go with an actor who is quite the opposite to Craig, and play it safe. But then will they want to revert back to the same old paint by numbers Bond?
    Read the lines, save the day and get the girl. It also depends on the direction they take the series, who the director and writers are. Will it be an over the top adventure, with outlandish villains, or a more grounded spy thriller, with a few implausible action set pieces?
    Glad I'm not the one who has to cast Bond #7.
    My hypothesis, and it is what it is, is that they'll take an approach akin to the Craig era, if only because it was successful. People are now used to it, they seem to like it, so it is the careful way to go forward. Also, if you look at how they went from Connery to Moore, or even from Moore to Dalton, it was the way they did it.
  • Posts: 9,770
    I just watched a 30 second clip of Matthew Goode in a show called Discovery of Witches

    He is 44 he is british and honestly hearing him discuss life as a vampire in the show I could see him as Bond..

    I mean sure they would need to get a move on and get him signed and doing his first film by next year and a film every other year if they want a trilogy but yeah
  • GadgetManGadgetMan Lagos, Nigeria
    Posts: 4,247
    Risico007 wrote: »
    I just watched a 30 second clip of Matthew Goode in a show called Discovery of Witches

    He is 44 he is british and honestly hearing him discuss life as a vampire in the show I could see him as Bond..

    I mean sure they would need to get a move on and get him signed and doing his first film by next year and a film every other year if they want a trilogy but yeah

    Yeah, Goode is a good actor. But if EON are looking for a Bond in his forties,(something which looks highly unlikely) I'll go with Michael Fassbender. Like Daniel Day-Lewis, Fassbender is the James Bond that never was.
  • talos7talos7 New Orleans
    Posts: 7,980
    GadgetMan wrote: »
    Risico007 wrote: »
    I just watched a 30 second clip of Matthew Goode in a show called Discovery of Witches

    He is 44 he is british and honestly hearing him discuss life as a vampire in the show I could see him as Bond..

    I mean sure they would need to get a move on and get him signed and doing his first film by next year and a film every other year if they want a trilogy but yeah

    Yeah, Goode is a good actor. But if EON are looking for a Bond in his forties,(something which looks highly unlikely) I'll go with Michael Fassbender. Like Daniel Day-Lewis, Fassbender is the James Bond that never was.

    I've always found him very creepy looking.

  • GadgetManGadgetMan Lagos, Nigeria
    Posts: 4,247

    talos7 wrote: »
    GadgetMan wrote: »
    Risico007 wrote: »
    I just watched a 30 second clip of Matthew Goode in a show called Discovery of Witches

    He is 44 he is british and honestly hearing him discuss life as a vampire in the show I could see him as Bond..

    I mean sure they would need to get a move on and get him signed and doing his first film by next year and a film every other year if they want a trilogy but yeah

    Yeah, Goode is a good actor. But if EON are looking for a Bond in his forties,(something which looks highly unlikely) I'll go with Michael Fassbender. Like Daniel Day-Lewis, Fassbender is the James Bond that never was.

    I've always found him very creepy looking.

    Oh, I think it's something about his gaze/eyes.
  • talos7talos7 New Orleans
    Posts: 7,980
    Yes…

    DzKrmLJ.jpg
  • DenbighDenbigh UK
    edited February 2022 Posts: 5,869
    I've never been keen on Goode as Bond, but he would've been a good young Gareth Mallory.
  • GadgetManGadgetMan Lagos, Nigeria
    Posts: 4,247
    Lol. I knew it.
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