The What if EON casts an older actor for the next Bond? (late forties, early 50's)

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  • thedovethedove hiding in the Greek underworld
    Posts: 5,449
    I agree @Ludovico we did drift.

    Okay I don't think this will happen, but then I never thought Craig would come back for NTTD.

    What if EON decided to remake the films? Lets face it the series has been uneven. Some of the adventures were and are classics. But some, well maybe a second attempt would polish them up a bit. Would EON ever consider doing remakes of the original films? If so what do you think would be the public reception to such a thing? How would the passionate fans react to remakes.

    For some context, lets say they remake the films that are based on Fleming novels. So we are talking remaking films DN thru to TLD.
  • Posts: 4,226
    That would be really weird. The thing about Bond is that so many story elements are reused and (most importantly) readapted anyway it'd be a bit pointless in trying to make a second go of a 'lesser film'. EON is very welcome, for example, to make Bond 26 about 007 going head to head with a dangerous assassin and use broad elements of TMWTGG/try to improve on certain ideas (albeit while crafting an original and unique story with some of those plot elements). By actively remaking it you're somewhat shackled to that material that there's not as much room to go somewhere different creatively (although obviously some remakes can be radically different to the films they're based off of, but still...)

    I don't think that would result in a string of consistently successful films, there'd be quick audience burn out with it, and I can imagine it annoying a lot of fans.
  • Posts: 15,154
    It would hurt the franchise a lot, both critically and financially. Why redo classics? I don't think recycling old stories and characters work anymore. I say this as someone who was and still is for the return of Blofeld and SPECTRE. But I might have thought differently had they made DAF a proper revenge story. Goldfinger, Dr No and others have been done perfectly the first time round. I could see Mr Big returning, because Kananga was so different from him. They could redo Drax for the same reason. Except that the novel Moonraker has been milked in so many adaptations now... I just don't see it working.
  • talos7talos7 New Orleans
    Posts: 8,228
    It would be lazy and desperate.
  • SIS_HQSIS_HQ At the Vauxhall Headquarters
    edited December 3 Posts: 3,797
    The classic films have been remade several times, we have AVTAK based on GF, we have TWINE/SP/NTTD based on OHMSS, even LTK was a remake of LALD in some angles.

    I don't want to see another GF again, let alone I want to see another remake of OHMSS (we have many of this).

    I agree with @talos7 it would be too lazy.
  • echoecho 007 in New York
    Posts: 6,333
    It would be rough going. For the '60s films, they are so iconic that it would just seem like a pale imitation.

    For the '70s films, how would you remake LALD? Unlikely.

    The others from the '70s are such deviations from the novels that they could adapt the novels more readily with new titles and character names.
  • Posts: 1,394
    I don't think it will be in a remake but I do think that we will see Goldfinger again sooner or later.
  • Posts: 15,154
    SIS_HQ wrote: »
    The classic films have been remade several times, we have AVTAK based on GF, we have TWINE/SP/NTTD based on OHMSS, even LTK was a remake of LALD in some angles.

    I don't want to see another GF again, let alone I want to see another remake of OHMSS (we have many of this).

    I agree with @talos7 it would be too lazy.

    Not to mention MR, that has been used for, well, MR, AVTAK, GE and DAD. And that's at the top of my head.
  • SecretAgentMan⁰⁰⁷SecretAgentMan⁰⁰⁷ Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria
    edited December 3 Posts: 2,121
    I think Barbara is wise enough, not to want to remake the Bond films. Instead, she would continue the style of looking at particular Bond films, and getting inspired by them for the new film. I'm sure Bond 26 would remind us of a particular Bond classic, without copying it directly. I remember people saying Craig in CR, reminded them of Dalton in LTK...in both looks and style.
  • Could they do a more faithful but contemporary version of Moonraker? Obviously Drax couldn't be a WW2 era Nazi.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,498
    Could they do a more faithful but contemporary version of Moonraker? Obviously Drax couldn't be a WW2 era Nazi.

    They've already done DAD, I guess you could do that story again.
  • Yes, true. I dont think you couldn't get away with the gene therapy storyline these days!
  • edited December 3 Posts: 4,226
    Yes, true. I dont think you couldn't get away with the gene therapy storyline these days!

    I think it’s a fine line. A Bond villain altering his appearance using a high tech mixture of surgery and stem cell therapy only available to the mega rich? That’s a cool spin on the MR novel and even the DAF film in my opinion.

    The fact that it’s a Korean General turning into a Richard Branson-esque billionaire doesn’t quite do that idea justice in my opinion, and I’m not sure if they’d do it like that today, agreed. But again, fine line between brilliance and stupidity.
  • It would be cool. I just mean I wouldn't be surprised if a studio didn't green light the idea.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,498
    007HallY wrote: »
    Yes, true. I dont think you couldn't get away with the gene therapy storyline these days!

    I think it’s a fine line. A Bond villain altering his appearance using a high tech mixture of surgery and stem cell therapy only available to the mega rich? That’s a cool spin on the MR novel and even the DAF film in my opinion.

    The fact that it’s a Korean General turning into a Richard Branson-esque billionaire doesn’t quite do that idea justice in my opinion, and I’m not sure if they’d do it like that today, agreed. But again, fine line between brilliance and stupidity.

    Yeah considering there's that super rich guy who's taking transfusions of his son's blood and doing all sorts of other experimental procedures to try and stay young, it doesn't seem so wild.
  • Posts: 4,226
    mtm wrote: »
    007HallY wrote: »
    Yes, true. I dont think you couldn't get away with the gene therapy storyline these days!

    I think it’s a fine line. A Bond villain altering his appearance using a high tech mixture of surgery and stem cell therapy only available to the mega rich? That’s a cool spin on the MR novel and even the DAF film in my opinion.

    The fact that it’s a Korean General turning into a Richard Branson-esque billionaire doesn’t quite do that idea justice in my opinion, and I’m not sure if they’d do it like that today, agreed. But again, fine line between brilliance and stupidity.

    Yeah considering there's that super rich guy who's taking transfusions of his son's blood and doing all sorts of other experimental procedures to try and stay young, it doesn't seem so wild.

    I’d actually never seen or looked that up till now. You’re right, it’s very weird and has a whiff of DAD about it. If only DAD had gone a slightly different story route with the gene therapy stuff. Maybe people would find it as relevant today as they do Carver in TND (the Bond franchise has a wonderful ability to point out the maniacal absurdities of the mega rich/powerful).
  • Posts: 1,496
    Could they do a more faithful but contemporary version of Moonraker? Obviously Drax couldn't be a WW2 era Nazi.

    I think, although DAD does use some elements of the MR novel, a more faithful adaptation and update, like CR, could be great. From what I heard from pre-production crew on Danny Boyle's Bond, which was, as we know, cancelled, it used elements of the MR novel re: a huge bomb to be dropped on central London, in fact a huge full scale missile was built by the Art Department for the film, and then completely abandoned when Boyle and Eon went separate ways. The villain was, apparently a Russian oligarch with powerful UK connections, which sounds like a potential reworking of Hugo Drax. And Bond saves the day and, as a result, he is knighted at the end of the film. But Craig wanted his Bond to perish, and Boyle didn't agree with that. Perhaps one day the Boyle script will pop up somewhere.
  • edited December 3 Posts: 4,226
    ColonelSun wrote: »
    Could they do a more faithful but contemporary version of Moonraker? Obviously Drax couldn't be a WW2 era Nazi.

    I think, although DAD does use some elements of the MR novel, a more faithful adaptation and update, like CR, could be great. From what I heard from pre-production crew on Danny Boyle's Bond, which was, as we know, cancelled, it used elements of the MR novel re: a huge bomb to be dropped on central London, in fact a huge full scale missile was built by the Art Department for the film, and then completely abandoned when Boyle and Eon went separate ways. The villain was, apparently a Russian oligarch with powerful UK connections, which sounds like a potential reworking of Hugo Drax. And Bond saves the day and, as a result, he is knighted at the end of the film. But Craig wanted his Bond to perish, and Boyle didn't agree with that. Perhaps one day the Boyle script will pop up somewhere.

    I always presumed Bond's death was agreed upon when they hired Boyle and would have been worked into any version of NTTD (I think he himself said that his script featured Bond dying at the end too, so I always presumed he at least went along with it). The idea of Bond being knighted sounds a bit odd as it's something Fleming explicitly said Bond would never do in TMWTGG. Sounds almost like a Dark Knight Rises type ending where it's too good to be true/it's ambiguous whether Bond has died or not (which is actually kind of interesting!) That's really interesting though about the villain being an oligarch and the MR connection (another mandatory element of the film I always presumed EON wanted was a megalomanic villain planning to cause major destruction, as it's not something the Craig era had quite done before and it's there in the NTTD we got). I know some of the concept art for Boyle's planned film are around online and it looks cool.
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    edited December 3 Posts: 16,498
    The first I ever heard about Bond dying was when Boyle left the project, and the rumours were that his script killed Bond and Boyle and Eon disagreed about that: so when it happened in NTTD, and with all of the 'don't tell any spoilers' stuff from the premiere, I was not entirely surprised when he died in the film.

    I'd say DAD is really quite faithful to MR, I feel that any other attempt to adapt MR would feel like DAD again.
  • edited December 3 Posts: 4,226
    mtm wrote: »
    The first I ever heard about Bond dying was when Boyle left the project, and the rumours were that his script killed Bond and Boyle and Eon disagreed about that: so when it happened in NTTD, and with all of the 'don't tell any spoilers' stuff from the premiere, I was not entirely surprised when he died in the film.

    I'd say DAD is really quite faithful to MR, I feel that any other attempt to adapt MR would feel like DAD again.

    I've always wondered whether there's actually a definitive Boyle Bond 25 script that can even be released, or if it was by the point Boyle and Hodge walked more a collection of drafts that were still being put together. I know they were still very much in the process of trying to make it work. It might be a reason there seems to be so many little bits and pieces about its plot mentioned/floating around as conceivably in one version they perhaps played around with a Dark Knight Rises ambiguous death/ending. Or perhaps it was a fake ending in case a version of the script was at risk of leaking... I don't know one way or the other but that'd be my guess...
  • Posts: 1,496
    mtm wrote: »
    The first I ever heard about Bond dying was when Boyle left the project, and the rumours were that his script killed Bond and Boyle and Eon disagreed about that: so when it happened in NTTD, and with all of the 'don't tell any spoilers' stuff from the premiere, I was not entirely surprised when he died in the film.

    I'd say DAD is really quite faithful to MR, I feel that any other attempt to adapt MR would feel like DAD again.

    I think it would be matter of tone rather than content because DAD is, in the second half, almost full on fantasy, where as the MR novel is much more grounded as I believe Boyle's Bond film would have been.
  • echoecho 007 in New York
    Posts: 6,333
    mtm wrote: »
    007HallY wrote: »
    Yes, true. I dont think you couldn't get away with the gene therapy storyline these days!

    I think it’s a fine line. A Bond villain altering his appearance using a high tech mixture of surgery and stem cell therapy only available to the mega rich? That’s a cool spin on the MR novel and even the DAF film in my opinion.

    The fact that it’s a Korean General turning into a Richard Branson-esque billionaire doesn’t quite do that idea justice in my opinion, and I’m not sure if they’d do it like that today, agreed. But again, fine line between brilliance and stupidity.

    Yeah considering there's that super rich guy who's taking transfusions of his son's blood and doing all sorts of other experimental procedures to try and stay young, it doesn't seem so wild.

    That's Peter Thiel. He's also gay and the primary financial backer of the soon-to-be VP of the US. Starting to feel like a Bond plot...specifically For Special Services.
  • Posts: 4,226
    echo wrote: »
    mtm wrote: »
    007HallY wrote: »
    Yes, true. I dont think you couldn't get away with the gene therapy storyline these days!

    I think it’s a fine line. A Bond villain altering his appearance using a high tech mixture of surgery and stem cell therapy only available to the mega rich? That’s a cool spin on the MR novel and even the DAF film in my opinion.

    The fact that it’s a Korean General turning into a Richard Branson-esque billionaire doesn’t quite do that idea justice in my opinion, and I’m not sure if they’d do it like that today, agreed. But again, fine line between brilliance and stupidity.

    Yeah considering there's that super rich guy who's taking transfusions of his son's blood and doing all sorts of other experimental procedures to try and stay young, it doesn't seem so wild.

    That's Peter Thiel. He's also gay and the primary financial backer of the soon-to-be VP of the US. Starting to feel like a Bond plot...specifically For Special Services.

    Bryan Johnson was the one I looked up (who, for a man on an anti-aging quest, looks absolutely awful in current pictures). There are more of them! Mega rich people are a strange lot...
  • mtmmtm United Kingdom
    Posts: 16,498
    Yeah I'm thinking of Bryan Johnson, don't know Thiel.
  • thedovethedove hiding in the Greek underworld
    Posts: 5,449
    Okay so we all seem in agreement that remakes are bad, re-using plots and Fleming pieces is fine and welcomed.

    Okay lets pose another one...what if EON did an older Bond for the next series of films?

    Bond has always been cast with an actor the age of early 30's or early 40's. In fact the series has never really embraced age or played with what an older Bond might look and act like. What if EON leans into this and casts an actor in his mid or late 40's in the role of Bond. Would the movie going public embrace the character as an older actor? Or do you think we should stay in the sweet spot of early 30's for the Bond actor?
  • edited December 3 Posts: 4,226
    Moore was 45 during LALD and I think his age/experience worked in his favour. I’d argue that Brosnan being 42 worked for GE because it’s about a Bond who’s been around a bit (albeit is still in his prime). An actor in their mid or even late 40s could still be a Bond in their prime in that sense.

    Depends on the actor, but no reason the public wouldn’t embrace a Bond of that age. There might be a question of longevity in the role though, but generally speaking I don’t think it’d be a problem.
  • GoldenGunGoldenGun Per ora e per il momento che verrà
    Posts: 7,161
    I'd actually embrace a short-term Bond actor now. We've had Craig staying for 15 years or so, which was okay, but a less long career I think wouldn't be bad for the next guy. Three films and then on to the next one.
  • SecretAgentMan⁰⁰⁷SecretAgentMan⁰⁰⁷ Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria
    edited December 3 Posts: 2,121
    007HallY wrote: »
    Moore was 45 during LALD and I think his age/experience worked in his favour. I’d argue that Brosnan being 42 worked for GE because it’s about a Bond who’s been around a bit (albeit is still in his prime). An actor in their mid or even late 40s could still be a Bond in their prime in that sense.

    Depends on the actor, but no reason the public wouldn’t embrace a Bond of that age. There might be a question of longevity in the role though, but generally speaking I don’t think it’d be a problem.

    Yeah, I think if the days of "James Bond Will Return In ThunderBall" for example, comes back, then giving an older guy the role shouldn't be a problem, since the films would be released faster. But how excited would Bond fans be, if the next Bond film is announced at the end of Bond 26? Truly excited...I believe.
  • Posts: 1,394
    Nah, we've already had that in the last few movies.

  • Posts: 15,154
    007HallY wrote: »
    Moore was 45 during LALD and I think his age/experience worked in his favour. I’d argue that Brosnan being 42 worked for GE because it’s about a Bond who’s been around a bit (albeit is still in his prime). An actor in their mid or even late 40s could still be a Bond in their prime in that sense.

    Depends on the actor, but no reason the public wouldn’t embrace a Bond of that age. There might be a question of longevity in the role though, but generally speaking I don’t think it’d be a problem.

    Yeah, I think if the days of "James Bond Will Return In ThunderBall" for example, comes back, then giving an older guy the role shouldn't be a problem, since the films would be released faster. But how excited would Bond fans be, if the next Bond film is announced at the end of Bond 26? Truly excited...I believe.

    Yeah, I think that's the issue with an older Bond: shorter tenure. Moore was cast in very specific circumstances, when they had to go for someone more famous. And like Brosnan, he looked younger than his age.
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