There are many stories about the close casting calls of the famous spy character, James Bond. Many actors have lost the role at the last minute. One such story was narrated by actor James Brolin. He shared his experience of getting insanely close to playing the part in ‘Octopussy‘.
Among other actors, Pierce Brosnan shares a very similar experience to Brolin. He also lost the role almost at the finish line of the movie ‘The Living Daylights’. Clint Eastwood and Burt Reynolds have also thrown their hat into the ring for the role of Bond but ended up losing it.
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James Brolin Explains How He Got And Later Missed James Bond Role In ‘Octopussy’
During an interview with CinemaBlend, the acting legend James Brolin shared his experience of the time when he was close to getting the role of Bond but lost it to Roger Moore. He said his story starts from the time Moore almost called it quits two movies earlier than he eventually did.
He said “They were interested – Roger Moore said that it was it, he wasn’t doing any more Bonds. And so they were combing who’s good, and as you know, they made a few oddball choices in the past. Guys that did one picture, and then disappeared. So anyway, I go shopping and I get all dressed up like maybe James Bond might look at a party, and I fly over to meet [Albert] ‘Cubby’ Broccoli, and he takes me along. We get along great, right from the get-go. We had a discussion about the dialect, and I said, ‘Well, you know, like a New York stage actress, you know how they’re a little haughty?’ I said, ‘We’ll just be sort of [Midatlantic] with that. We won’t nail it down.’ And he said ‘That sounds good.’”
How Did Roger Moore Come Back For More?
It was Sean Connery who brought Roger Back to the franchise. It was ‘Never Say Never Again’ that decided the fate of the franchise in 1983. Jack Schwartzman, the producer of the franchise asked Moore in which movie he would want to star – ‘Octopussy’ or ‘Never Say Never Again’. Moore explained, “Of course, Jack Schwartzman came to me and asked me if I wanted to do that, or did I want to do this. So, yes, of course, that gave me a certain amount of leverage. I said to Sean, ‘Which one do you want to do?’ and he didn’t want to do the one with Cubby, so I’m here and he’s there”.
After Sean chose to make ‘Never Say Never Again’, 1983 turned into a Bond vs Bond showdown. That meant Roger Moore would be the star of ‘Octopussy’. That’s how Brolin lost his chance even after he did screen tests after landing the audition. But sadly, it was never meant to be for him. He also said that he has no hard feelings.
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