Bond, James Bond: The Movies

[chameleon]

The latest casting rumors
put Julian McMahon and Daniel Craig -- again, ew!! -- at the forefront for Bond:

The widely reported two finalists to assume the coveted mantle of Agent 007 in Casino Royale are Julian McMahon (Nip/Tuck, Fantastic Four) and Daniel Craig (Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, Road to Perdition). According to Ain't It Cool News, the casting is "really down to [Sony Pictures chairperson] Amy Pascal's final choice, and as I understand it, she's in the midst of making her mind up right now." (Oscar-nominee and oft-rumored contender Clive Owen has said that he was never approached about the role.)

I'd be thrilled if it was Julian (maryshelley, where are you?), but I find it very hard to believe that Clive wasn't a top contender, much less never approached. Where there's smoke, there's fire, and there was a LOT of reporting about Clive and Bond. I still think Clive would be the best choice, but from a business perspective I can see Julian being preferable - e.g. cheaper and not looking at a very prestigious career, as is Clive. But Julian is sex on a stick and isn't too bad an actor, so he'd be a great Bond.

ETA Out of fairness, here's the trailer for Daniel Craig's latest, which premiered at Sundance recently. The movie looks like an advertisement for Craig as Bond. And I still think he's, well, ew.

PS Sorry about the URL tags, I tried several times but it only worked if I put in the weird line returns. Grrrr!

[agentsculder]

If it's down to Julian McMahon and Daniel Craig, I hope they go with Julian. At least he'll really bring the sexy, and I don't get that from Daniel Craig.

As has been noted umpteen times, Clive Owen would be perfection, but he's not going to do it. Why no one is talking to Gerard Butler is beyond me. Looks and attitude wise he'd be great, and he's still fairly young that he could do a bunch a movies. However, as a GB fan I don't want him to do it if Casino Royale is as badly written as the last couple of films. I love GB and James Bond, but currently, I like GB more. I'd hate to see his career get ruined if the film did poorly.

[hasbro]

Upon rebirth of this thread I would like to stump for Sean Bean again.

[monsterzero]

I'd back Sean Bean. Why not? It would be cool as he already knows the flavor and starred in the last good Bond flick.

[chameleon]

In parallel to Casino Royale with a grown-up Bond, apparently they've been talking to Orlando Bloom about a teen Bond . Methinks this is a stupid idea.

[katiebear3]

Do any of these people want to play Bond. It's a loser role. The series has jumped the shark.

[heavenwithagun]

My [url=http://img44.exs.cx/img44/1149/updatewebposter3vl.jpg
]contribution[/url] to this discussion.

[chameleon]

For God's sack, these people need to stop holding their dicks and make a decision already!

Never say never again -- Pierce Brosnan is rumoured to be back in the picture as James Bond. Internet sites are abuzz this week with reports that Sony Pictures, which just bought the rival MGM studio that had distributed 007 movies for decades, has given the Irishman a renewed chance to return.

[angel17987]

Apparenty Daniel Craig is now the next James Bond for sure. I take this with a fist load of salt though. Seriously, these people really need to shit or get off the pot.

[chameleon]

Honestly, are the producers blind? This
over this ??

Long article in Variety today (subscription required) about possible choices, and it reports that casting is still up in the air. All the usual suspects are named: Clive, Daniel, Julian, Gerard and also possibly Brosnan again.

The Broccolis have been notoriously tightfisted with their stars. Though Brosnan brought the franchise to unparalleled heights, he never received a gross percentage, nor has any actor who played the Bond role before him. So while Brosnan's last Bond payday exceeded $20 million when bonuses were factored in, that was a fraction of the money Tom Cruise earned for the "Mission: Impossible" franchise or what Keanu Reeves got for "The Matrix" films. (That's why early speculation over actors like Hugh Jackman, Jude Law and Colin Farrell seemed absurd.)
..........
MGM has denied that any Bond has been chosen. No announcement is likely to be made until the franchise is controlled by Sony, which has long wanted to be in the Bond biz.