WILL 007 GO FOR 008?

Considering that I've read Wilson was originally against Craig, this is an astounding moment in Bond history. This is pretty much my MOVIE NEWS OF 2011. It's the best story I've read in a long, long time. Long live Daniel Craig!

 

EDIT: BTW: I expect Craig to be in peak physical condition in his 50s

That tabloid site that posted the original story is a pop-up nightmare, btw. I wouldn't go there.

But I will make you a gentleman's bet, Daniel, that not only does this not come to pass, but that SKYFALL is Craig's final Bond film. I'll bet it's very good, and I'll bet Craig decides to go out on a win. Contracts are altered and broken all the time.

I'm with Philbert. Craig is done after this one, with Fassbender or Cumberbatch waiting in the wings.

BTW: Great article! Chock a block with fascinating Bond info*, it's a great read and pure CHUD

 

I just remembered with a chuckle that those CRAIG IS NOT BOND! folks still exist, apparently. I'd love to see the look on their faces this morning (mwa haha)

 

PS: Thanks for the shout out! :)

 

*Dalton was offered GOLDENEYE? What astounding news!

Cumberbatch as Bond? I can't imagine that coming to pass. The guy is lacking in all physicality, he's talented but lanky and odd looking

 

Fassbender would be fine, but as for Craig being "done"? I don't see it. He's said that he'd like to stick with the role as long as the scripts are good. Bond allows him to remain a star no matter what even as he gets to work on other projects on the side. Craig leaving the role before doing at least one more film after SKYFALL would IMHO be a disaster of terrifying proportions

 

I mean, I like Purefoy* and the other potential Bonds... but Craig is perfect. To cast anyone else would only be a step down

 

*much more than Fassbender

I won't indulge in too much fancasting, but to me INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS is proof that Fassbender was probably grown in a test tube specifically to play Bond. But I also agree with Daniel that EON's casting choices are rarely obvious, and I think with a bit of toning up Cumberbatch would make a cracking leftfield 007.

Great article. Would love for Craig to carry on, but I don't see him going past four. If he does, though, I'm all there.
 

 

Seriously doubt that. Cumberbatch doesn't have Bond's dashing good looks - he's meant to be the guy all the women want to fuck - and Fassbender is a serious rising star. Once everything is said and done, I see him having something closer to Russell Crowe's career.

Craig also doesn't have Bond's dashing good looks. He's got the face of a boxer. It's all in the charisma and delivery.

The one thing I'd say is that the casting choice of Daniel Craig was obvious. Anyone who saw LAYER CAKE could have seen him as Bond, as reviews at the time pointed out (many citing the scene where he prowls down the hallway of his flat with a silenced pistol, acting Bond like - though I liked the scenes where he was dealing with the emotional ramifications of having killed Jimmy Price - they told me he was a world class actor)

 

At that moment though to me it was instantly clear there was but ONE CHOICE for the role

Yes Cumberbatch is very off-putting. I don't like him at all, to be perfectly frank. I think he was a good Holmes, but he's also a strange looking individual who sort of gives me the creeps. He's the Anti-Craig

 

Guess we disagree there 'cos even though he might not be as clean-cut as Brosnan, I think Craig is really damn handsome.

Yah that is crazy... Craig is a god. I'm sorry. I remember the trailer for THE MOTHER came out and I saw it in theaters before I even know who he was, and the entire trailer was centered around people being stunned with Craig's unnaturally good looks and physique when he shows up to work on their house as a carpenter or something

I'm with Phil, there is no way in hell he will make 8 films, and after some of the later Moore efforts I really don't want to see a 50 year old man as Bond.

He's not going to make eight. He will make more than three.

 

How's that for a prediction?

Vague and unsatisfying. Boo!

 

Outlandish statement: Daniel Craig's head is shaped like a swede.

Great article Daniel. But EON does occasionally go with the obvious casting choice. See: Brosnan, Pierce. 

I think Fassbender won't be Bond.  The cries for him remind me of the fanboy hysteria for Clive Owen.  I think Fassbender will go on to bigger and better things and have a more varied career.  The guy is an Actor.

I fucking LOVED Casino Royale but QoS was soo fucking bad that I couldn't care less about another Craig Bond flick, especially one that will be coming out 4 years after the last one. I say make this the last and give it to Nolan, who's obviously gagging to do a Bond movie, and cast Fassbender in the role as I think Craigs dourness was mistaken for great acting when the truth is that he's just really dull.

Yeah but having a franchise in your back pocket doesn't hurt.

 

I hate to jump on the bandwagon, but your opinions are all just really terrible. Craig is not dull, he's incredibly charismatic. "I... can't find the stationary. Will you come help me look?" Fassbender would seem a bit creepy delivering that line. Craig makes you want to go check for the stationary. Nuff said

 

In all likelihood, Craig probably won't go for it and even if he does, I'll be shocked if he makes it to 8 films.  Contracts certainly are altered and broken all the time.  That said, I bet that he makes it to four.

 

Much appreciated!

 

As for the second part, yes and no.  In 1994, Pierce Brosnan was certainly an obvious choice, but he was on their radar from 1981.  He had yet to become Remington Steele and merely dropped by the set of For Your Eyes Only to visit his then-wife, Cassandra Harris.  When Moore finally stepped down from the role, Pierce was one of their top choices to take over the role.  When scheduling problems occurred do to his contract on Remington Steele, EON moved on to Timothy Dalton (who they had previously approached in 1969).  By the mid-90s, Brosnan still hadn't really "made it big" outside of his TV work and remained at the top of their list................though he still had to audition for the role.  Hell, Sean Bean was cast as 006 because he was their second choice for Bond.  Anyway, I suspect they wouldn't have gone after Pierce if he had managed to carve out a bigger career for himself on the big screen.  EON's not a fan of snagging a "star" for Bond.  Even Roger Moore hadn't really managed a lot of fame outside of television when he was cast back at the start of the 70s.

 

Whenever the time comes for the role to be recast, fans tend to spout of talent that are either stars already or potentially on their way to becoming one.  Ewan McGregor, Hugh Jackman, Guy Pearce, Jude Law, Russell Crowe, Clive Owen, etc. were all touted by fans and the press as shoe-ins for Brosnan's replacement at one time or another.............and most never even considered, let alone got a call.  Just take a look at the other top three contenders who lost the role out to Daniel Craig in 2004:  Sam Worthington, Henry Cavill, and Alex O'Loughlin.  All have made it since then, but were on no one's "list" at the time.  Craig was the best known of the bunch and still most had never heard of him.

 

Whether the time for recasting comes in a couple years or longer, those are the kinds of actors you need to be looking at as potential replacements because those are the kind that tend to get a serious look from EON.

 

 

 

As for Fassbender?  He'd make a fucking killer Bond villain at some point and THAT is the kind of role he needs in this franchise, if he is to ever take part in it.

Wait, Alex O'Loughlin was up for Bond?  The guy from Moonlight and Three Rivers?

That's...that's just crazy.

Anyone who doesn't think Daniel Craig is the epitome of awesome sexy manliness is totally gay.

Neil Marshall's JAMES BOND IN... FOREVER AND A DAY.

 

With Jean Dujardin as JAMES BOND.

Whatever, I don't really care.

Regardless of what happens, I think we can all agree that this is an awesome pic...

 

What happened to the talks of a black Bond?  If Craig bows out then I'd like to see that.  Was it Colin Salmon that was bandied about some other high profile British "TV" star?  Elba is a no for me though.

Yes we can, where did you find that?

Which is why I never for a second believed them when they swore they'd never approached Clive Owen.

 

I'm also in the "Craig walks after Skyfall" crowd.

 

I know I can't speak for the guy, but Nolan doing a Bond film just makes no sense to me at this point. Maybe earlier in his career as a director, but not not.
 

 

If Craig starts churning out hit films that aren't Bond related, he'll walk after the 4th film. If not,he'll leave after the 6th one.

I love Craig as Bond but was completely against him when he was initially cast. My girlfriend however loves the bones of the man - as Kate stated above, it was when she saw The Mother in the cinema. And to be honest I think he's cool as fuck - his Bond in Casino Royale was awesome as was his Bond in QoS but that film sucked balls - I've watched it a few times now and I've still no idea what the story is with the money found on the rogue agent that's discussed around that computer table thing in MI6.

 

My ideal Bond that would never ever happen would be portrayed as a well-seasoned mid/late 40's Bond who is well into his career played by no one but Jason Isaacs. And to have Bond back to spying - you know, hiding in shadows, espionage etc - rather than an all out action man. Plus keep M the fuck out of the field and behind a desk - give Bond his mission then fuck off until the end of the movie.

 

All said and done, I think Craig will do one more after Skyfall then bow out.

I'd never seen him in anything before Bond, and I didn't quite get why Craig was picked until I heard him speak. The man has a fantastic voice.

 

On the Chrisopher Nolan idea, he'd be a better fit for a Mission Impossible revamp than Bond - I don't think he has the red bloodedness in him to nail the swagger of a good Bond movie.

   As long as Craig is fit, I have no problem with him making Bond movies till he is 54. It can be done; Ford still looked fit in Crystal Skull. The last two Moore flick prove you can't look old and make these movies AVTK could have been an outstanding Bond flick. Walken was great as the heavy and his plan was pure Bond villainy: it was bat shit crazy but had logic to it.

 

   Fessbender would be an awesome Bond. In Inglorious Basterds he reminded me of a mean Rodger Moore.Its easy to see Moore saying,"If this is it old boy, I hope you don't mind if I go out speaking the King's." His performance in X-Men First Class I thought he would be an excellent Bond, and he would put his own stamp on the role.

 

When looking at the lack of success for "Cowboys and Aliens" and "Dream House", my guess is Craig's going to hold on to Bond for as long as he can. At least until he gets some other non-Bond successes.  I hope he sticks around for a long time. He's perfect for the role, and charismatic as hell.

Hmmmm...

 

It's not so much the extra five films.  Or a Daniel Craig in his fifties.  What bothers me is them trying to bang out one of these flicks every two years.  Can they keep things fresh and surprising?  I don't like the idea of Old Craig slumming through repeats of what he did before.

 

Yes, I know this was pulled off successfully in the 60s.  But that was then and this is now.  I think I'd be fine with Craig doing a total of 5 Bonds and leaving on a high note while he's still in his 40s.

Good point. Nolan's asexual as unfuck.

This needs to happen.

 

Better yet just make films of the books but a period peices set in the 50's

If they could pull off a Bond film every two years, Craig will still be younger in his 8th film than Moore in his 7th.

I doubt he will quit after SKYFALL. He said he was eager to return after his third film during the press conference and I believe that. I can see him bow out after his fourth, but if he still has enough enthusiasm and energy to keep coming back I have no problem. I think it was Tom Mankiewicz who said that the producers would be smart if they could lock him up and throw away the key. I like that they're eager to keep him. I don't recall seeing this much enthusiasm over a Bond actor by the producers since Cubby was confident of Dalton despite his unpopularity in the US.

 

Hey, just FYI: NEW RULES were implemented a while ago, and your contentless, off topic trolling is grounds for a banning

 

Mods?

I like Craig as Bond a lot (its nice having a Bond you believe could throw a decent punch again - been a while) and I hate to say it, but it isn't the age of the movie star any more, it's the age of the franchise, Craig would be smart to hang on for at least four films, but I see him being done after that. 

 

Eh, I'm still waiting for my Neil Marshall directed Bond starring Fassbender as 007, Bob Hoskins as M, Sean Pertwee and Liam Cunningham as the villains and Alexander Siddig wherever you can fit him.Oh and Rhona Mitra needs to be our evil Bond girl and Imogen Poots would make a great main squeeze for the man himself.

 

There was never any real talk.  Basically, Barbara Broccoli once made an off the cuff remark about how they loved working with Colin Salmon and how he'd probably make a great Bond.................which the tabloids and fans promptly ran with.

Someone posted it in the "Best of Bond" thread months ago and I thought it would be fun to include it in my article.  I'm not sure what its true source is though.  I would certainly hang a poster of it on my wall if one existed.

 

Wilson, Broccoli, and Owen himself have all stated that he was never approached for the role.  Jackman recently said that his agent was supposedly quietly asked if he was interested, but there's been no confirmation of this outside of Hugh's comments.  I seem to recall Wilson being taken aback by the very idea of Jackman playing Bond when an interviewer asked him once.

 

Until someone writes up a massive "tell all" book about the franchise, I doubt we'll ever get the full scoop on either.

 

Barring something crazy happening, he'll probably at least end up with a trio of hits with Fincher's Stieg Larsson adaptations.  If he can manage to launch a successful leading man career off those and Bond, he won't stick around for long.  If not, I suspect he'll be more than willing to make a few extra entries in the franchise.

 

With the exception of 1989-1995 and 2008-2012, we've never gone more than three years at a time without a new Bond film since 1962.  The "every other year" bit is a standard for the franchise.  Sometimes the results have been questionable in the past, but they're going to do their best to get back on track and continue to pump them out that often...............regardless of whether it is Craig in the role or someone else.  As long as they don't wait until the last minute to start writing the scripts for future entries (which is EXACTLY what happen with QoS), it shouldn't be a problem.

 

 

Yep, he'll finish out a solid 4 years younger than Moore if he actually decides to stick around for that many films...........and will more than likely be in way better shape.

 

As for Dalton, I've always wondered how many films he would have made with the franchise if those legal issues hadn't temporarily halted the series in the early 90s.  I suspect he would have at least made four of them.  For better or worse, we were robbed of two more Dalton entries.  Either way, Brosnan would likely still have taken over the series in 1995.