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Why oh why are there so many actors playing Ernst Stavro Blofeld?

DragonpolDragonpol https://thebondologistblog.blogspot.com
edited February 2013 in Bond Movies Posts: 18,281
I know that this is a comment that could be made about other characters in the James Bond film series (Felix Leiter, Chief of Staff etc.), but here goes on Blofeld:

We know from the original Bond novels that Blofeld is a master of disguise - this being so, he changes his appearance through plastic surgery and weight-loss/facial hair, contact lenses etc. Why then do so many differemnt type of actors portray him on the screen - why not just have the same actor from YOLT to DAF (which in itself, was filmed out of continuity). All three Blofelds look different/behave differently. Why could Charles Gray not just have played a character called Jack Spang or Sigmund Stromberg - he had grey hair like the Blofeld of OHMSS, but he was a very poor Blofeld. Telly Savalas was bald like Donald Pleasance, and he had the requisite "missing earlobes" but he was the only one to reflect some of the characterisation of the Blofeld of the books. Blofeld could have been such a better villain in the film series, as it is he's a pantomine villain from a cartoon strip - a Dr Evil influence in Pleasance form or a fey, theatrical and campy Blofeld as played by Gray in DAF - plastic surgery perhaps explains this face change (Gray also dresses in drag), plus his fate is left unclear. In FYEO we had Blofeld (with neck-brace from OHMSS incarnation) completely blanking DAF as it in turn completely blanks DAF and Blofeld here acts as the punch line to a rather long and silly visual joke in the pre-titles sequence that seems at odds with the revert to serious Bond that summed up the whole FYEO film experience.

I intend to look at the filmic Blofeld in an article called 'The Many Deaths of Ernst Stavro Blofeld (1964-1981)'.

I do think that with Kananga there was a deliberate attempt to move away from all of the Blofeld/SPECTRE crap of the Dr. No-DAF years and to create a freelance villain that was interesting in his own light and that didn't have to rely on the SPECTRE claptrap as his organisation - he had much more to do as an actor as a result - a great gift that was partly squandered due to Tom Mankiewicz's script.

Thanks for reading. I'd love to hear your views on this vexed subject of Blofeld in the films.

Comments

  • Baltimore_007Baltimore_007
    Posts: 5,634
    I don't like to maybe talk about Blofeld, as it invariably turns to "Blofeld should return" in that - No, he shouldn't. Re-boot or not, simply has no place in todays James Bond. Character has been defunct for over 40 years and I can't take to a return now. I hope it never sees the light of day

    But if we go back to the when Ernst was featured, there was some ridiculous inconsistencies for sure. We didn't actually see the character until 1967, and why didn't Donald Pleasance return in the role ? He survived the last picture, and what do they do ? - Bring in Kojak of all things, although Telly Savalas did do a good job that year, I'll give him that much. But as before, you half expect Blofeld to offer Lazenby a lollipop and ask "Who Loves Ya Baby"

    After that, Blofeld with Charles Gray (or is it Dikko Henderson), suddenly features a head of hair, and the head of SPECTRE takes to dressing up as a woman ?

    I liked the early ones with Russia and Thunderball as all you hear is the voice and you're left in the dark as to who this can really be, but once again, there's been too much confusion with the character, including the ambiguous appearance in For Your Eyes Only - take note- why the neckbrace, as it was omitted from Diamonds - and I really hope a return in the 21st Century simply doesn't materialize once again

    Blofeld and SPECTRE are simply archaic and outdated now, re-boot or no damn re-boot, but that's how I feel about it. What worked for once decade won't work for another

    Goodnight
  • dramaticscenesofQOSdramaticscenesofQOS
    Posts: 1,282
    Blofeld ia DEAD

    Dr. Evil is alive though.

    Bringing back Blofeld will only give the finger to the old series aa though remaking them. The Broccoli family has made it clear, in the age of Dr Evil: no Blofeld and no remakes of movies such including Livr and Let Die.

    Besides, we have Quantum, Mr. White, and Mr.Haines (Hayyyyyynz, in a slow creepy voice). That's enough right there. Red Sky at Night maybe?

    No Savalas, no Blofeld for me even though I'd be cool if Lazenby played a scornful rejected villain or Blofeld in an enhanced remake of OHMSS, but as stated above: let's get real and accept what Barbara and Michael have stat edwere once the nay sayers and they were the pro-DC people and look how greater Nd more-original the series got.
  • 00Ed00Ed
    Posts: 140
    The first time I saw You Only Live Twice (movie of the week on ABC some time in the mid-80s), I was immensely disappointed with Blofeld. It seemed like a joke. Donald Pleasance just isn't threatening, scar or no scar. "Keel Bond, naw!"

    Telly Savallas, on the other hand, is one of the greatest villains in the series. A heavy who can duke it out mano a mano with Bond, Telly's Blofeld is by far the best. I'll admit, however, that he's such a familiar face that it can be a little distracting.

    Charles Gray, like Pleasance, is more comical than menacing. Drag Queen Blofeld. 'Nuff said.

    On a side note, I saw For Your Eyes Only before any of the other Bond films, so for a few years, I was confused about the whole thing with the bald guy in the wheelchair.

    I agree wholeheartedly that a Pleasance-style Classic Blofeld would not fit at all in the Craig era. As I've pointed out before, the General Public is now more familiar with Dr. Evil than with Blofeld. People would spend the entire movie laughing and wondering why the heck a Bond movie is copying Austin Powers.

    On the other hand, if an entirely new villain were to appear whose name happened to be "Ernst Stavro Blofeld," I could probably roll with it.
  • craigrulescraigrules
    Posts: 284
    It worked cheaper to eon to hire actors on short term contracts and the regulars like dear Desmond said they got paid peanuts.
  • myworldisenoughmyworldisenough
    Posts: 1,143
    Telly Savallas should have been able to reprise his role. Charles Gray was good as a different character in his short scene in YOLT but his version of Blofeld in DAF was cringeworthy and camp in the extreme. I just can't take him seriously. He has no menace. He helped to cement Blofeld as a silly character which was then barely parodied ultimately by Austin Powers. Telly Savallas could have kept the character worthy of a future which was instead denied by its lapse into the joke it became.
  • LudovicoLudovico
    Posts: 15,123
    Funny, I always wondered why they never thought to have Erich Pohlmann as Blofeld for YOLT-DAF, they would have had the perfect voice, one that is both familiar and menacing and continuity. I say this carefully, as voice actors are not always good "physical" actors and seeing him in the flesh he might have lost is aura of menace. And I am not certain if he would have been a good physical match for Lazenby in OHMSS, or anyone for that matter.

    WHy they did not keep Pleasence in the role has something to do with his physical menace: fine actor as he is, his Blofeld was not very threatening and would not have been convincing in a fight against Bond. Imagine him on a blobsheigh with Lazenby punching him.

    And I agree with Ed00. People don't remember Blofeld, they remember the images and the parodies (they started way before Austin Powers). Use the book and get rid of the scar, the bald head, the cat, the Nehru suit and nobody will know the connection, should they decide to use Blofeld again.
  • bondsumbondsum
    edited February 2013 Posts: 3,333
    Baltimore_007 wrote:
    But if we go back to the when Ernst was featured, there was some ridiculous inconsistencies for sure. We didn't actually see the character until 1967, and why didn't Donald Pleasance return in the role ? He survived the last picture, and what do they do ? - Bring in Kojak of all things, although Telly Savalas did do a good job that year, I'll give him that much. But as before, you half expect Blofeld to offer Lazenby a lollipop and ask "Who Loves Ya Baby"
    I for one didn't expect Blofeld to offer Lazenby a lollipop and ask "Who Loves Ya Baby" for the simple reason that Telly Savalas hadn't been cast as Kojak when OHMSS came out. Obviously you're talking retrospectively which can be applied to every actor that's been in a Bond film and gone on to appear in another career defining role afterwards.

    The only possible reason I can give for Pleasance not returning is down to internal politics. Saltzman originally cast Jan Werich in the role but Cubby and director Lewis Gilbert weren't impressed after several days of shooting and replaced him with Donald Pleasance. When the moment came for Saltzman to spearhead the OHMSS production he decided to replace the actor probably based on the logic that if 007 can change then so can Blofeld, and possibly because he didn't feel Pleasance was physically menacing enough. It's been said that after YOLT the producers took turns in individually producing the Bond films whilst the other took more of an executive backseat - OHMSS, LALD were Saltzman's babies and DAF, TMWTGG were Cubby's. I would hazard a guess that neither was particularly thrilled with each others casting choices and made changes where they saw fit.
  • thelivingroyalethelivingroyale
    edited February 2013 Posts: 12,837
    I like Pleasance in and out of Bond but I think I prefer Savalas' Blofeld. More menacing and more physically threatening. He should've just done all 3 Blofeld films.

    Really not a fan of Charles Gray.
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited February 2013 Posts: 11,189
    I wonder what Fleming would have thought of Savalas as Blofeld. Physically he looked great but not so sure about his noticable American accent.
  • AliAli
    edited February 2013 Posts: 319
    Bringing back Blofeld would be a massive error IMHO. Skyfall is all the historical referencing we needed, and even then it was ladled on a bit too thick. Blofeld would be an anachronism in the modern world and, if updated too much , would simply not be Blofeld, so why not have a new character as the head of Quantum? For me, Dr. Evil killed off the idea of Blofeld. Once the character moves into parody, it will only ever be seen as that.
  • bondsumbondsum
    edited February 2013 Posts: 3,333
    It's never a good idea to ask the novelist what he thinks of the movie adaption of his literary work, @BAIN. Anthony Burgess disliked the movie based on his novella A Clockwork Orange as did Bret Easton Ellis who hated American Psycho and Roald Dahl who felt the movie version of his book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was “crummy,” found Gene Wilder’s Willy Wonka to be “pretentious” and “bouncy,” and thought the director had “no talent or flair." Believe it or not Ken Kesey wasn't impressed with One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest which won a ton of Oscars! In other words, never ask an author what he thinks of the movie version of his book.

    PS. That's a whole different debate, @Ali, and one that's been touched upon and answered on other threads.
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited February 2013 Posts: 11,189
    Thats a good point @Bondsum. I remember reading about Dahl's views on Charlie. Didn't Thomas Harris like Silence of the Lambs though? There may be the odd exceptions.
  • LudovicoLudovico
    Posts: 15,123
    BAIN123 wrote:
    I wonder what Fleming would have thought of Savalas as Blofeld. Physically he looked great but not so sure about his noticable American accent.

    If he had not become a priest and instead had decided to become an actor instead, Karol Wojtyla would have made a great OHMSS Blofeld.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,183
    I can honestly see Leo as a great future Blofeld.
  • doubleoegodoubleoego #LightWork
    Posts: 11,139
    On a related note, I seem to remember in the Jesus film, tge greatest story ever told, the film had Max Von Sydow as Jesus, Donald Pleasence as Lucifer/Satan and Telly Savallas as Pontius Pilate. 3 actors in the same movie who at one point played the same character.
  • LudovicoLudovico
    Posts: 15,123
    bondsum wrote:
    It's never a good idea to ask the novelist what he thinks of the movie adaption of his literary work, @BAIN. Anthony Burgess disliked the movie based on his novella A Clockwork Orange as did Bret Easton Ellis who hated American Psycho and Roald Dahl who felt the movie version of his book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was “crummy,” found Gene Wilder’s Willy Wonka to be “pretentious” and “bouncy,” and thought the director had “no talent or flair." Believe it or not Ken Kesey wasn't impressed with One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest which won a ton of Oscars! In other words, never ask an author what he thinks of the movie version of his book.

    PS. That's a whole different debate, @Ali, and one that's been touched upon and answered on other threads.

    Actually the felling Burgess had about Kubrick's movie are more complex than this, and often contradictory. He had good reports with Kubrick, to whom he dedicated his Napoleon Symphony. Anthony Burgess liked some aspects of the film, but overall felt like he had lost control over his own novel, which he was never entirely satisfied of to begin with.
  • LudovicoLudovico
    edited February 2013 Posts: 15,123
    DarthDimi wrote:
    I can honestly see Leo as a great future Blofeld.

    In a few years, if he takes a few pounds of muscle, maybe. But in general I am not a fan of big celebrities playing Bond villains (I never considered Javier Bardem a celebrity at the same level as Di Caprio). Right now, I could picture Gary Lewis as Blofeld.
  • bondsumbondsum
    Posts: 3,333
    Ludovico wrote:
    Actually the felling Burgess had about Kubrick's movie are more complex than this, and often contradictory. He had good reports with Kubrick, to whom he dedicated his Napoleon Symphony. Anthony Burgess liked some aspects of the film, but overall felt like he had lost control over his own novel, which he was never entirely satisfied of to begin with.
    I actually had a long chat with Anthony Burgess a good few years before he died and can vouch that he didn't like the movie nor the cast. I'm sure he respected Kubrick in much the same way as Stephen King does, but that doesn't stop either from being dissatisfied with their movie adaptions.
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    Posts: 11,189
    Its a shame really that authors often aren't happy with an adaptation of their novel. I suppose someone else's imagination/vision is going to be different from your own.
  • LudovicoLudovico
    Posts: 15,123
    bondsum wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    Actually the felling Burgess had about Kubrick's movie are more complex than this, and often contradictory. He had good reports with Kubrick, to whom he dedicated his Napoleon Symphony. Anthony Burgess liked some aspects of the film, but overall felt like he had lost control over his own novel, which he was never entirely satisfied of to begin with.
    I actually had a long chat with Anthony Burgess a good few years before he died and can vouch that he didn't like the movie nor the cast. I'm sure he respected Kubrick in much the same way as Stephen King does, but that doesn't stop either from being dissatisfied with their movie adaptions.

    I envy you for having the chance to talk to my favorite writer. I met his widow a few years back, but we did not discuss A Clockwork Orange. Burgess did defend the movie when it was in the middle of controversy, but this was more a matter of principle about free speech and art. He did say a few good words about it, at least some aspects of it (Alex being blinded by a milk bottle for instance).

    Little known fact: Burgess also wrote a script for TSWLM.
  • bondsumbondsum
    Posts: 3,333
    I only found out about TSWLM script long after I met him so sadly I didn't get the chance to discuss this with him, @Ludovico. When in conversion, he was a most generous and warm person who made you feel important. For the record, he wanted Mick Jagger for the role of Alex and thought the rest of the gang looked too old.
  • LudovicoLudovico
    Posts: 15,123
    TSWLM is mentioned in his autobiography, his idea was a group of anarchist kind of villains who were not interested in money or power (they had plenty of it) but the arbitrary and destructive use of said power. Instead of doing terrorism for a goal, they were doing it for insane reason: threaten to blow an airplane unless the Vatican burns down the Sistine Chapel or the president strips naked live on TV, things like that. There was elements of sado eroticism between Bond and the Bond girl. In the end Burgess just abandoned the idea altogether.
  • 00Ed00Ed
    Posts: 140
    Ludovico wrote:
    If he had not become a priest and instead had decided to become an actor instead, Karol Wojtyla would have made a great OHMSS Blofeld.

    You mean Pope John Paul II?
  • LudovicoLudovico
    Posts: 15,123
    00Ed wrote:
    Ludovico wrote:
    If he had not become a priest and instead had decided to become an actor instead, Karol Wojtyla would have made a great OHMSS Blofeld.

    You mean Pope John Paul II?

    Yes. I was joking of course, but had he become a professional actor, he would have made a good OHMSS Blofeld. Maybe too good looking, but he had the right age in 1969, and he was Polish.
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