Roger Moore once explained why his James Bond is “so outrageous”
The first actor to ever portray James Bond was Barry Nelson in a television adaptation of Casino Royale. Before long, Sean Connery established himself as the first cinematic Bond with his debut effort in 1962’s Dr. No and proceeded to deliver a further six performances as the famous British spy, including 1983’s non-Eon-produced Never Say Never Again.
After David Niven, who was author Ian Fleming’s original choice for the role, starred in 1967’s Casino Royale, and George Lazenby delivered an effort in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Roger Moore was cast as 007 for 1973’s Live and Let Die and he continued to play the iconic character for a further six movies.
Many consider Connery’s Bond to be the quintessential version and that Moore’s iteration was one that made something of a mockery of Connery’s sophisticated spy by taking a more comic approach. When speaking with Terry Wogan, Moore admitted to this, noting, “I think we have injected a little more humour.”
While some felt that Moore’s humorous Bond was out of line with the mood and tone of the films, the actor himself felt that it was rather fitting for the overall ridiculous nature of the character. “Bond films are so outrageous, the stunts are so outrageous,” Moore told Wogan. “Everything is beyond belief.”
He explained, “There is no such thing as a spy who can walk anywhere in the world, and every bartender recognises him and goes, ‘Oh, Mr. Bond, a vodka martini, shaken not stirred.’ Spies aren’t really like that, are they?” Moore felt that spies in real life would be those who could walk through a crowd and not be noticed, so he felt justified in bringing an air of comedy to his efforts as 007.
Speaking with EW, Moore said that there were two sides to his Bond portrayals, the side that he focused on from Ian Fleming’s line, “He didn’t take pleasure in killing, but took pride in doing it well,” and another side that issued, “This is a famous spy – everyone knows his name. Come on, it’s all a big joke!” In that light, Moore knew that he ought to play Bond “tongue-in-cheek”, a complete departure from Connery’s suaveness.
While Moore certainly admitted that he injected his version of Bond with a dry sense of humour, Connery had been less than impressed with the direction that the character was taken in when Moore took the reins. “His is a sort of parody of the character, as it were, so you would go for the laugh or the humour at whatever the cost of the credibility or the reality,” the Scottish actor once said.
He added, “I think that’s basically the difference. I think he took another direction with it that way and acquired an entirely different audience.” Indeed, there is a striking distinction between Moore and Connery’s Bonds, just as there are differences between, say, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig’s portrayals.
When it came to Moore, who played 007 in The Man with the Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker and For Your Eyes Only, plus a handful of other movies, the English actor tapped into the unrealism of the character, highlighting his ridiculous characteristics and delivering some truly iconic performances in the process, which some believe ought to be given more credit.
