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Is there an age limit on Bond? How old is too old?

Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
edited November 2011 in Bond Movies Posts: 13,355
In your opinion how old is too old for an actor to play James Bond?

I'd like to know if people agree if there is and what that might be.

I have my ideas but you first.
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Comments

  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    edited November 2011 Posts: 15,718
    Anything younger than 28 is too young.

    Anything older than 50 is too old.... UNLESS the actor ages very well (like Brosnan post 2002, like Dalton), then the script can be acomodated for an older, ageing Bond. But even then, 57 should be the oldest Bond should ever be... even if the movies aknowledged an older Bond on the verge of retirement.

    So yes, had Dalton or Brosnan continued playing Bond after their current last film (LTK for Dalton and DAD for Brosnan), the script could have toned down the action and fitted more their age... until they reach the age of 55/57 and are forced to retire...
  • PanchitoPistolesPanchitoPistoles 2.0
    Posts: 4,619
    No actor should play Bond after the age 50 unless they are really good and age well.
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    edited November 2011 Posts: 13,355
    Good answer. I would say anywhere from 50 - 55 is when an actor should leave, so 52 or 53 sounds about right to me.

    I have no problem if the actor is just past 50 personally. Everyone was OK with Brosnan doing another for 2005, when he would have been 52.
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    Posts: 13,978
    IMO, it depends on the actor. Some Bond actors might get away with playing Bond at an age the others wouldn't. I believe a late 50's Dalton could have gotten away playing Bond, I can't say the same for the others.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    edited November 2011 Posts: 15,718
    Brosnan could have worked as well... When I saw Ghost Writer, I was lightstruck at how much Brosnan could have been a wonderful ageing Bond. And he was 57 during the film. With toned down action to fit his age, he wouldn't have made the pain face every 5 minutes.
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    Posts: 13,355
    50 as a standard with anything beyond that depending on the individual actor seems reasonable. I agree with the points on Dalton and Brosnan, you could have gone on 5 years longer with them I think.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,718
    The problem with this is that it's very easy to say now that Brosnan or Dalton could have played Bond 5 years older. But in the moment of things, it's hard to know how good or badly one will age. We could say in 2018 when seeing Craig at age 50 in B26 that 'he can play Bond in 2 years time' and the suddenly age will rapidly catch up to him, and he'd look terrible in 2020.
  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    How old is Bruce Willis???

    Anyway, as others have said, it depends on the actor.
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,718
    Willis is 56.
  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    DH4 came out 3 years ago right?
  • DaltonCraig007DaltonCraig007 They say, "Evil prevails when good men fail to act." What they ought to say is, "Evil prevails."
    Posts: 15,718
    DH4 came out 3 years ago right?
    4 (2007).

  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    Posts: 13,355
    Die Hard 6 will be the problem but anyway, that's another topic all together.

    56 is too old for an action hero type.
  • ZekidkZekidk
    Posts: 3,276
    I don't care about age. For me, it's a matter of how old the actor playing Bond looks. If they can make a 60 year-old look 45, then that's fine with me!
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    edited November 2011 Posts: 13,355
    The problem with this is that it's very easy to say now that Brosnan or Dalton could have played Bond 5 years older. But in the moment of things, it's hard to know how good or badly one will age. We could say in 2018 when seeing Craig at age 50 in B26 that 'he can play Bond in 2 years time' and the suddenly age will rapidly catch up to him, and he'd look terrible in 2020.
    Indeed. Look at Moore from Moonraker to For Your Eyes Only when he was 51 and 53, it covers your point to the tee...

    Maybe we should boot the actor out at the press conference. ;-)
  • The_ReaperThe_Reaper
    Posts: 1,092
    Ford was 66 for Crystal Skull, right? He looked pretty dang fit. Watch that scene when he gets scrubbed down. He's got some pipes on him there! Wow. He looked tough. So yeah, depends on the actor. Craig looks very good for his age, Moore aged well but I think he was pushing it at 57. At 50 they should be preparing for their very last run at the series. No more.
  • QBranchQBranch Always have an escape plan. Mine is watching James Bond films.
    Posts: 14,590
    An actor aged between 35-55 sounds about right. As mentioned, it depends on the actor, and how gracefully they age.
  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    The problem with Moore was that IMO he just wasn't a graceful action figure as Bond so it just made him look older and weaker but going by looks alone he wasn't terrible. With Craig on the other hand if he can stay in relatively good shape, he'd still look just as credible when he'd be 50.
  • Samuel001Samuel001 Moderator
    Posts: 13,355
    An actor aged between 35-55 sounds about right. As mentioned, it depends on the actor, and how gracefully they age.
    That age also happens to be when men are offered the best parts of their career, so any sane person would stay with Bond that long or thereabouts, if it's up to them.
  • tqbtqb
    Posts: 1,022
    i personally like seeing my james bond as a grandpa figure... like roger more in avtak.

    joking...
  • DoubleOhhSevenDoubleOhhSeven
    Posts: 1,778
    Anything above 50 is too old. 30 through 50 I suppose is the timeline.
  • VirageVirage
    Posts: 1,856
    28 is to young (of corse the exception is a flashback or YB then I wouldn't mind a teenage bond.)

    To old is as really hard, as said before it depends on how the actor ages. PBs age in DAD surprised me and "Moore" jumping onto the lift makes me sigh. But am I the only one who thinks DC's stubble makes him look 20 years older.
  • TopGearJB007TopGearJB007
    edited November 2011 Posts: 624
    Connery- He quit right around when he should have. I still think he should have gotten OHMSS and maybe LALD. I have no idea how he aged so fast in 4 years from YOLT to DAF. That being said, he still looked great in DAF (my second favorite Bond film.) He looked okay in NSNA.

    Lazenby- No comment. Obviously he was the right age.

    Moore- Looked great up 'til around FYEO. I love OP and AVTAK as they are, but I can't stop the feeling that perhaps these 2 movies should have gone to Dalton. I can't say that Moore aged too fast because he was in the role for so long.

    Dalton- He could have been Bond well into the 90's easily. He still looks great today.

    Brosnan- I have honestly not seen any of his non- Bond movies past DAD. From what I've heard about his look in The Ghost Writer, and looking at his recent pictures, he could easily have pulled off a Moore length era.

    Craig- Keep it up and you'll have at least a Connery length era.

    Final thoughts? Based on my analysis of each era, I'd have to agree as long as the actor ages gracefully, they could play Bond right up until around age 56.
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    edited November 2011 Posts: 13,978
    But am I the only one who thinks DC's stubble makes him look 20 years older.
    No you're not. I think he looks quite a lot older then he really is, so the stubble doesn't help.

  • doubleonothingdoubleonothing Los Angeles
    Posts: 864
    It has to be said, Craig is looking older these days. However, he has so much screen presence and charisma that it kind of brushes that aside. The man is damn cool.

    Personally, I think the actor should play the role for as long as they are convincing in it. I mean, some people age very well, others maintain their physicality well into their 50s. If the actor can convince you that they're physically capable of doing what Bond does and they look believable with their leading ladies, then I see no problem. But honestly, that probably means mid 50s as the cut off.

    I think 28 is probably the youngest I'd like to see Bond, and even then that feels a little young. To my mind Bond is perennially in his mid-thirties, although a lot of the actors that could have made great Bonds (and still could if Craig wasn't in the tux) are in their 40s.

    With an average of a Bond every two to three years and a Bond's age range being between 35-55, that gives each actor around 8 films in the role. However, the actor is more likely to be closer to 40 when he takes the role and closer to 50 when he leaves it, so that's actually more likely to be 4-5 films.
  • Baltimore_007Baltimore_007
    Posts: 5,634
    Said it before that Agent James Bond 007 is supposed to be 35 years of age forever, but we've seen some differences in this, as in the actors who played him, Lazenby was in his 20's when he played the role and Moore had his bond swansong at 57 years of age

    From a 2011 standpoint and for future releases, maybe 25 could work, but ideally you'd be looking at a 30-40 range, Craig made his debut in his late 30's and did a fine job, I hope we never again see a Bond actor crawl into Moore territory again as he did, but I can't see that happening again. It can't happen, surely
  • SAMSAM
    Posts: 107
    A more important consideration is the physical condition of the actor and how they appear on screen.

    An example is Sean Connery who looked quite heavy in Diamonds Are Forever, though Roger Moore (two years senior) appeared in decent shape in the following Bond production.
  • OHMSS69OHMSS69
    Posts: 2,341
    I agree with earlier posts : 35-40. Man at this age (usually at 35) has some miles on them and are keen to the ways of the world.
    Though Lazenby was younger he did well.
    Craig, Dalton seemed to be the right ages.
    As for Moore going well into his 50's. He actually tried to quit after MR. he was turning 50 and worried about his credibility as an action hero (also he complained about the age difference between he and his leading ladies) He was scandalized to learn that his AVTAK co-star Tanya Roberts' mother was younger than him!
  • Agent007391Agent007391 Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Start
    Posts: 7,854
    I say no younger than 30/31, and no older than 53, with a big stretch to 54 IF the actor ages as well as Brosnan seemed to.
  • 001001
    Posts: 1,575
    The age limit doesn't matter, it depends on how well the person looks for the part.
    Everyone ages differently.
  • josiahjosiah
    Posts: 1,386
    I don't want to see Bond sleeping with women who look young enough to be his daughters again. If that means casting more age appropriate women instead of recasting Bond then okay.
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