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The part of Bond will go to the best and most appropriate actor at the time.
What Brosnan said about Salmon was more to do with him being politically correct than anything else. I'm not necessarilly against a black man playing Bond, I would have been against Salmon playing him. He has no big star charisma to ever pull it off. And for that reason, I'm out.
Pulp Fiction 2: The Jules Story - with a white actor portraying Jules? :-))
I wouldn't call that fiction , I would call that a milestone. james bond is more than just a fictional character ,he is part of our cultural entertainment history and future . turning james bond into a african man would not only ruin the james bond franchise but also set a precedent in hollywood and filming history that there are no standards or traditions left in filming cinematography and that everything is about money.
Make a new character if you want
Tea anyone?
I don't want to see a non-white Bond for the same reasons as everyone else, but comparing the role of Bond to Barak Obama is just dumb.
(sips) Quite.
From IMDb and other online chatroom sources I have personally gauged that there is an overwhelming majority of people who think "it's time for a black James Bond." Of course, I have no idea what that means.
In fact, I actually find it more insulting and racist to not be OK with James Bond staying a white character than not wanting a black Bond…. That somehow the character remaining a white man is a crime against the human race and anyone who thinks that making the character black is a bad idea will be strung up after their fixed trail in The Hague. Of those people, all I ask for is a little intellectual honesty- please.
But what is worse is that most people today do not think of James Bond as an interesting, complex literary character that should be closely adhered to. They think of him as an empty shell of an action hero inside a three-piece suit, a martini in one hand and a buxom Euroblonde’s buttcheek in the other saving the world one quip at a time.
Few seem to understand that Ian Fleming wrote James Bond specifically as a white British man; to make the character black changes Bond's outlook on the world and therefore changes Fleming's character altogether. At the face of this fact, people come out of the woodwork claiming that Fleming wrote Bond as race-neutral; and, while I am a staunch proponent of free speech and different ideas, quick to condemn cheap measures of silencing a debate, anyone who actually buys into this claim does nothing but expose a clear misunderstanding and/or ignorance of Fleming's character and novels.
My personal opinion on the matter is that of course a black actor can give a good performance as James Bond (he could not get much worse than 'ol Piercy, anyway) - but why change what Fleming already brilliantly created?
Interestingly, even though he's hidden his accent to play Americans for many of the most high-profile roles of his career, chatter has circulated for years that Elba could one day wind up playing one of the most iconic British film roles there is: James Bond.
"It's a rumor," he says flatly. But does that mean you should dismiss it out of hand? Not necessarily. Elba says he recently talked about the role with his father and said that while it sounded like an interesting idea, he had concerns. "I just don't want to be the black James Bond," he says. "Sean Connery wasn't the Scottish James Bond, and Daniel Craig wasn't the blue-eyed James Bond, so if I played him, I don't want to be called the black James Bond."
That doesn't, of course, really answer the most interesting question: What would he do if they asked him? At first, he's noncommittal. "I"d definitely consider it," he says. But when Linda Wertheimer presses the issue — if Sony called, would he get in a cab to take the meeting? — he can't resist.
"I'd not only get in the cab," he says, "but I'd take the taxi driver out of the car, hostage. The taxi, jump out while it was moving, jump onto a pedal bike that was just past the door as I got on it, and then get onto a plane — on the wing — land on top of Sony Studios, slide through the air conditioning, and land in the office."
Sounds pretty confident. And so does this closing line: "I'm never shaken or stirred."
http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2011/09/28/140870300/idris-elba-the-man-who-is-luther-was-stringer-and-could-be-james-bond
The interview also appears to be available in audio form.
you would rather have be stuck with a worse actor than Laz play Bond over a non-white or light skinned cause he is white?
example casting:
a) you have a 5'6 heavy set white american
b) a tall dark hair french men
c) a really tall ex-basketball player white (think Shannon Bradley) but cant act at all
d) a Christopher Lee type (ex-sf turned actor) englishman of mixed heritage
e) a white welsh man that can act but cant fight and has no charisma.
take the screen tests when the picked Lazerby none of the other actors fit the bill so Laz won by default because he could fight.
for me BOND = ENGLISH/BRITISH, QUEEN and COUNTRY, Deadly, lover of women/cars, likes a drink, has a Coolness, calm under pressure, looks good in a TUX/under cover and is finally suave. If the actor can pull all that off....there you go...
but i will say this...i DONT want a "gangsta" bond.
This is what I was talking about; intellectual honesty is sorely needed in this discussion.
they did pick LAZ.......i would rather have the best actor possible....i dont see skin tone being that important...what is the difference between a deeply tan "white" man vs a light skinned non-white?
I see being english/british/common-wealth being the most important...unless you are ok with Clint Eastwood being Bond...
I have seen that Life piece about all of the actors who tried out for James Bond in OHMSS - Lazenby was the clear standout in my mind out of that weak crop for a variety of reasons, none of which skin color played into, and, for my money, gave a fine performance in the role.
so for all you guys saying it be okay for a black bond, then why not a Chinese guy? or hell why not a woman? why not a Muslim? why not a Korean? why not a gay man? why not a guy who has sex with animals? why not a transgender? why not a midget? ??
get the point now? there must be a standard. If Bond were to be changed in race it would only continue to change in other ways.
BOND WILL ALWAYS BE WHITE.
Edit by moderator: No swearing.
Why can't another agent be black? Why does it have to be a character established for over 50 years as a white person, who'd all of a sudden morph into a Black man?
Open to change? As I wrote many times, if you're going to make Bond black, why not make him gay as well? And while we're at it, let's make him transgender. And a Muslim. And a little person, handicapped. And, eh, mute.
As stated, the mere rumor of a black actor playing James Bond is sure to incite immediate controversy amongst those…”true fans” of Ian Fleming’s dapper spy, who would argue (as usual) that ‘Black does not equal Bond,’ or that switching the character’s race would amount to some form of PC pandering… Because, you know, James Bond is a white male who just so happens to change ethnicity (Scottish? English?) and physical traits (blond or auburn hair, blue or brown eyes) depending on the actor playing him. A black Bond would undoubtedly have as many opponents as he would supporters.
http://screenrant.com/idris-elba-james-bond-kofi-134345/
LOL- I never know Scottish and English were different ethnicities. (Though both being British makes it even funnier!)
Seriously, the whole idea of Bond being anything but white, especially using the "non-historical figure" theory, is patently ridiculous in my opinion. Bond is based in part of Ian Fleming's exploits (he is white) and also speculated to be based on the exploits a field agent he knew (who was also white). Now these PC panderers are going to insist that because Fleming didn't specify Bond is white, his race is open to interpretation? Codswallop :-)) . Bond is white. End of story. The PC crew needs to get a life and work on more important social issues than this.
http://popwatch.ew.com/2009/12/14/james-bond-majestys-secret-service/
That's^ what I was talking about. Out of all of the actors who tried out for the role in 1969 George Lazenby was the clear standout - and not because of skin color.