This week, on March 21, 2023, Timothy Dalton turns 77. The British actor, of course, was best known for playing James Bond in two films in the 1980s, but he had the opportunity to join a third film in the franchise – and beyond. When it came to making pictures, Bond bosses had a few extra terms for the actor.
In 2015, Dalton opened up about how he lost the role of James Bond in the 1980s after starring in The Living Daylight in 1987 and License to Kill in 1989.
He remembers: “When [the next movie] It happened, maybe it was four or five years later. [Bond boss Cubby Broccoli] I asked if I’d come back, and I said, “Well, I actually changed my mind a little bit. I think I’d love to do that.”
Having previously stated that his Bond films were more like “parody” films, he encouraged Broccoli to “try to have the best of both. [films] which you have done, and combine them into a third.”
Unfortunately, while he was promoting this great third Bond movie, he was met with a harsh reality.
Dalton recalled Broccoli telling him, “Look, Tim. You can’t do one. There’s no way, after a five-year gap between films, you can go back and just do one. You have to plan for four or five.”
Nowadays, it’s only natural to expect actors to sign multi-picture deals. Just look at the stars of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, who have major roles in over five consecutive films.
But Dalton said this was a huge commitment for him. Once he learned that he would be involved in many more films in the future, he made the difficult decision to walk away from the role of James Bond.
“I thought: ‘Oh, no, this is going to be the rest of my life,'” Dalton said. a lot. Very long. So I respectfully declined.
Shortly thereafter, fellow British actor Pierce Brosnan was contracted to be the new James Bond, and his first movie, GoldenEye, hit theaters in 1995. He stayed on the scene for a total of four 007 films, ending with 2002’s Die Another Day.
Years later, Dalton opened up about why nothing had changed in his films during the time he played the cool spy.
He explained: “I loved them all, and I loved the books. So that was the loose framework that we kind of embarked on, but then you find no one else wants to change everything! The studio just doesn’t want it, the people working on it don’t want to change it.” Everyone is happy with what they know.”
Eventually, things got “a little stale” for Dalton.
However, he went on to praise the work Daniel Craig has been doing during his five-film stint.
“I mean, now they have it [changed]Follow Dalton. “I think now, with Craig, they have. But that, almost 20 years later, they embarked on something more believable?”
The James Bond movies are now available to rent and stream on Amazon Prime Video.
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