The only time nobody wanted to be the new James Bond: “Joke figures and bad payers”
Ever since Sean Connery announced that he’d be vacating the tux in 1967, James Bond has been one of cinema’s most coveted roles, with countless actors lobbying hard to be cast as the iconic secret agent.
The race is about to heat up again in what marks a seismic shift for the long-running franchise; for the first time ever, the Broccoli family has nothing to do with the next 007 adventure, with Amazon controlling its future and hiring Denis Villeneuve to direct what might be the most important Bond yet.
The rumour mill inevitably spirals out of control whenever the part becomes available, and it’s been that way for decades. Countless actors have auditioned, some of them against their will, and the list of names who’ve unsuccessfully tried out for Bond, or knocked it back, is a lot longer than those who played it.
Barry Nelson will always be a useful bit of pub trivia as the first actor to embody the character, albeit as an Americanised version in a made-for-TV adaptation of Casino Royale, while Bob Holness would score even more points as the last person to tackle Bond before Connery in a radio production of Moonraker.
Finding the first headliner for the film franchise was an arduous task, and matters weren’t helped by Cubby Broccoli and Harry Saltzman’s reputations. They’d produced plenty of movies between them, but most of them weren’t exactly memorable, and they had individual reputations for being stingy, which did them no favours when they teamed up to mount Dr No.
Among the many thespians under consideration for the first official Bond flick was Michael Craig, who indicated that he was far from the only one to turn his nose up at a meeting. “At the time, Saltzman and Broccoli were more or less joke figures in the film business in England,” he explained. “Responsible for some real pot-boiling stinkers and notoriously bad payers.”
Their reputations preceded them, which didn’t bode well for the casting search. “No one quite knew how they had managed to get the rights to the 007 franchise,” Craig suggested. “But everyone expected them to really screw up if their past record was anything to go by.” That came from first-hand experience, after he revealed the salary on offer was £5,000. For context, Connery was eventually paid £6,000.
Craig acknowledged that the contract included “an option for further films at a slightly higher fee,” but not enough to convince him to meet with Broccoli and Saltzman. As it transpired, whispers had been running through the acting circuit about the producers’ frugality, which didn’t leave auditionees lining up outside their door.
“I later found out that a number of actors of my age and experience had likewise turned it down,” he shared, but the paltry compensation wasn’t an issue for Connery. Having reigned as one of pop culture’s most recognisable properties for over 60 years, it’s impossible to imagine there being a time when nobody wanted to be James Bond, but just like everyone else who works, those bills need to be paid.
