48 replies to this topic

[dodge]

Some American names did make it into the mix over time, including Burt Reynolds, Adam West, and James Brolin, but never McQueen.

Talk about a nasty game of Russian Roulette.

Burt Reynolds, Adam West, James Brolin = all bullets to the forehead.
Steve McQueen = the only empty chamber.

I have to remember to be thankful that none of those first 3 names ever materialized as Bond.

<Thank you, thank you, thank you...>

Well, now, I think you've underestimated Burt Reynolds. Or maybe it depends on which Burt Reynolds you're thinking of: the good ole boy/goofball from Cannonball Run/Smokey and the Bandit...or the fine actor of Deliverance or Sharky's Machine or Boogie Nights...or the macho man of Shamus...or the fine comic of The End or Starting Over. I can do without 80 percent of his films. But he has made a small handful of classics. And in a couple of films, at least, he showed that he could mix action, a deft comic touch and drama as well as anyone out there: The Longest Yard is my prime example. The accent? Well, hellfire, he's done a number of 'em and I'm confident that he could have pulled off a decent Scottish burr. At that time he was still as athletic as any actor going, and a former stuntman.

He's made more dogs than Sly Stallone, I know and so does he. But have another look at his body of work and I'm confident that you won't regard him as a bullet to the head as Bond.

P.S. At 5'9", he was the same height then as Steve McQueen, and just an inch or two shorter than Dan Craig.

[Tarl_Cabot]

Some American names did make it into the mix over time, including Burt Reynolds, Adam West, and James Brolin, but never McQueen.

Talk about a nasty game of Russian Roulette.

Burt Reynolds, Adam West, James Brolin = all bullets to the forehead.
Steve McQueen = the only empty chamber.

I have to remember to be thankful that none of those first 3 names ever materialized as Bond.

<Thank you, thank you, thank you...>

Well, now, I think you've underestimated Burt Reynolds. Or maybe it depends on which Burt Reynolds you're thinking of: the good ole boy/goofball from Cannonball Run/Smokey and the Bandit...or the fine actor of Deliverance or Sharky's Machine or Boogie Nights...or the macho man of Shamus...or the fine comic of The End or Starting Over. I can do without 80 percent of his films. But he has made a small handful of classics. And in a couple of films, at least, he showed that he could mix action, a deft comic touch and drama as well as anyone out there: The Longest Yard is my prime example. The accent? Well, hellfire, he's done a number of 'em and I'm confident that he could have pulled off a decent Scottish burr. At that time he was still as athletic as any actor going, and a former stuntman.

He's made more dogs than Sly Stallone, I know and so does he. But have another look at his body of work and I'm confident that you won't regard him as a bullet to the head as Bond.

P.S. At 5'9", he was the same height then as Steve McQueen, and just an inch or two shorter than Dan Craig.

Burt Reynolds was 5'9? Really? I think he looks 6' at least...

[Blofeld's Cat]

I dunno- you can't have Leiter cooler than Bond, can you?

Yeah, that's probably why Eon's Leiter has usually been a throwaway role played by an unremarkable-looking guy. Take him as close to Bond as he is in the books, and you'd risk having him steal the show.

Precisely the point I was trying to make in another Leiter thread on the subject. Many in these forums are choosing top grade actors for their choice to play the man in a future Bond movie, and I just can't see it ever happening. Admittedly, a lot of A grade actors these days seem willing to do cameos for a bit of fun, but I can't see the producers picking someone that would invariably outshine/overwhelm/out-gossip Bond himself as a character and Bond itself as a product.

[RazorBlade]

I think Steve McQ would have raised the bar, financially, for Bond- it would have made even more indecent amounts of money. Screw height, accent, land o' origin when the bux stops in EON's bank account.

I could dig DC in a McQueen biopic.

[Judo chop]

Some American names did make it into the mix over time, including Burt Reynolds, Adam West, and James Brolin, but never McQueen.

Talk about a nasty game of Russian Roulette.

Burt Reynolds, Adam West, James Brolin = all bullets to the forehead.
Steve McQueen = the only empty chamber.

I have to remember to be thankful that none of those first 3 names ever materialized as Bond.

<Thank you, thank you, thank you...>

Well, now, I think you've underestimated Burt Reynolds. Or maybe it depends on which Burt Reynolds you're thinking of: the good ole boy/goofball from Cannonball Run/Smokey and the Bandit...or the fine actor of Deliverance or Sharky's Machine or Boogie Nights...or the macho man of Shamus...or the fine comic of The End or Starting Over. I can do without 80 percent of his films. But he has made a small handful of classics. And in a couple of films, at least, he showed that he could mix action, a deft comic touch and drama as well as anyone out there: The Longest Yard is my prime example. The accent? Well, hellfire, he's done a number of 'em and I'm confident that he could have pulled off a decent Scottish burr. At that time he was still as athletic as any actor going, and a former stuntman.

He's made more dogs than Sly Stallone, I know and so does he. But have another look at his body of work and I'm confident that you won't regard him as a bullet to the head as Bond.

P.S. At 5'9", he was the same height then as Steve McQueen, and just an inch or two shorter than Dan Craig.

Burt Reynolds IS James Bond
in
On Her Majesty's Secret Service!

uh... I just don't know how I feel about that.

[dodge]

Some American names did make it into the mix over time, including Burt Reynolds, Adam West, and James Brolin, but never McQueen.

Talk about a nasty game of Russian Roulette.

Burt Reynolds, Adam West, James Brolin = all bullets to the forehead.
Steve McQueen = the only empty chamber.

I have to remember to be thankful that none of those first 3 names ever materialized as Bond.

<Thank you, thank you, thank you...>

Well, now, I think you've underestimated Burt Reynolds. Or maybe it depends on which Burt Reynolds you're thinking of: the good ole boy/goofball from Cannonball Run/Smokey and the Bandit...or the fine actor of Deliverance or Sharky's Machine or Boogie Nights...or the macho man of Shamus...or the fine comic of The End or Starting Over. I can do without 80 percent of his films. But he has made a small handful of classics. And in a couple of films, at least, he showed that he could mix action, a deft comic touch and drama as well as anyone out there: The Longest Yard is my prime example. The accent? Well, hellfire, he's done a number of 'em and I'm confident that he could have pulled off a decent Scottish burr. At that time he was still as athletic as any actor going, and a former stuntman.

He's made more dogs than Sly Stallone, I know and so does he. But have another look at his body of work and I'm confident that you won't regard him as a bullet to the head as Bond.

P.S. At 5'9", he was the same height then as Steve McQueen, and just an inch or two shorter than Dan Craig.

Burt Reynolds was 5'9? Really? I think he looks 6' at least...

Courtesy of Google. Celebrity Heights. Reynolds, like McQueen--and Tom Cruise today--must always have gone to fanatical extremes to ensure that his co-stars were shorter. Or that he was photographed standing above them.

[dodge]

Some American names did make it into the mix over time, including Burt Reynolds, Adam West, and James Brolin, but never McQueen.

Talk about a nasty game of Russian Roulette.

Burt Reynolds, Adam West, James Brolin = all bullets to the forehead.
Steve McQueen = the only empty chamber.

I have to remember to be thankful that none of those first 3 names ever materialized as Bond.

<Thank you, thank you, thank you...>

Well, now, I think you've underestimated Burt Reynolds. Or maybe it depends on which Burt Reynolds you're thinking of: the good ole boy/goofball from Cannonball Run/Smokey and the Bandit...or the fine actor of Deliverance or Sharky's Machine or Boogie Nights...or the macho man of Shamus...or the fine comic of The End or Starting Over. I can do without 80 percent of his films. But he has made a small handful of classics. And in a couple of films, at least, he showed that he could mix action, a deft comic touch and drama as well as anyone out there: The Longest Yard is my prime example. The accent? Well, hellfire, he's done a number of 'em and I'm confident that he could have pulled off a decent Scottish burr. At that time he was still as athletic as any actor going, and a former stuntman.

He's made more dogs than Sly Stallone, I know and so does he. But have another look at his body of work and I'm confident that you won't regard him as a bullet to the head as Bond.

P.S. At 5'9", he was the same height then as Steve McQueen, and just an inch or two shorter than Dan Craig.

Burt Reynolds IS James Bond
in
On Her Majesty's Secret Service!

uh... I just don't know how I feel about that.

Then, as a dear and loyal friend, let me give you something that you can be sure you:
Reynolds would have had to do the role with his mustache. I say this as a major fan: his face looks soft without one. With a mustache, he looks rakish, rough and full steam ahead. Imagine: Bond from the 70s on--with a Burt Reynolds mustache. The thought send spivers on up my shine!

[Andrew]

I thought that Reynolds was up for the role in LaLD, not OHMSS.

[Tarl_Cabot]

Connery is 6'3?

http://members.shaw....d/heights2.html

That can't be right...and Morgan Freen is taller than him(6'2 1/2?).Anyway, funny that we care so much...hieght has almost no tangible advantage(psychologiocal,absolutely) in life except for certain in sports.

[dodge]

I thought that Reynolds was up for the role in LaLD, not OHMSS.

I believe you're right, Andrew. Reynolds claimed he was approached in the early 70s, when Sean was demanding more money. After OHMSS. The timing would have been perfect too, for at that point Eon was already moving into the lighter comic vein. And Reynolds had a sure touch with that.

[JimmyBond]

I could dig DC in a McQueen biopic.

Hasnt Craig been rumored to be cast in a Steve McQueen biopic recently?

[dodge]

I could dig DC in a McQueen biopic.

Hasnt Craig been rumored to be cast in a Steve McQueen biopic recently?

Yes, the rumor's floating. And DC could be great. Wild times, wild guy. Triumph and tragedy. Just think of the stars in his orbit: James Coburn, Charles Bronson, Yul Brynner, Bruce Lee...Wow.

[Double-Oh-Zero]

As a fan of Steve McQueen myself (as I'm writing this, I'm wearing my green McQueen tee shirt), I'm not confident that McQueen as Bond would have worked out, logistically or artistically. He was way too big a star at that point ('67) to be Bond, and like doublenoughtspy said, his salary and outlandish demands would have taken up most of the film's budget.

And although I do like the Leiter idea, it only really would have worked out if McQueen played him just as he was breaking into film ('60-'62-ish, I think), as opposed to during the height of his fame; I'm in ageement with Loomis and BeeCee that McQueen prolly would have out-cooled the coolest spy on the planet at that point in his career.

And I'd be hugely interested to see the Craig-as-McQueen biopic materialize, BTW.

[RazorBlade]

Some American names did make it into the mix over time, including Burt Reynolds, Adam West, and James Brolin, but never McQueen.

Talk about a nasty game of Russian Roulette.

Burt Reynolds, Adam West, James Brolin = all bullets to the forehead.
Steve McQueen = the only empty chamber.

I have to remember to be thankful that none of those first 3 names ever materialized as Bond.

<Thank you, thank you, thank you...>

Well, now, I think you've underestimated Burt Reynolds. Or maybe it depends on which Burt Reynolds you're thinking of: the good ole boy/goofball from Cannonball Run/Smokey and the Bandit...or the fine actor of Deliverance or Sharky's Machine or Boogie Nights...or the macho man of Shamus...or the fine comic of The End or Starting Over. I can do without 80 percent of his films. But he has made a small handful of classics. And in a couple of films, at least, he showed that he could mix action, a deft comic touch and drama as well as anyone out there: The Longest Yard is my prime example. The accent? Well, hellfire, he's done a number of 'em and I'm confident that he could have pulled off a decent Scottish burr. At that time he was still as athletic as any actor going, and a former stuntman.

He's made more dogs than Sly Stallone, I know and so does he. But have another look at his body of work and I'm confident that you won't regard him as a bullet to the head as Bond.

P.S. At 5'9", he was the same height then as Steve McQueen, and just an inch or two shorter than Dan Craig.

Burt Reynolds IS James Bond
in
On Her Majesty's Secret Service!

uh... I just don't know how I feel about that.

I don't either. I like Burt Reynolds but as Bond? No.

[bond_girl_double07]

He'd have made a fine Leiter.

Ohhh good lord, that would have been spectacular! Now that you mention it, he is exactly my interpretation of what Leiter would have looked/acted like.. too bad McQueen's Leiter would have utterly stolen the show

[Agent Carter]

I don't think he was ever considered because he was American.

Anyway, I think Daniel Craig is basically Steve McQueen only British.

HAH! agreed.

I like McQueen. But Bond HAS to be be British. HAS to be!

[bond_girl_double07]

You know what would have been a train wreck (speaking of blond gentlemen who could have taken the reins in 68).. Michael Caine.. can you imagine how horrible that would have been Toooooo curly and east enderish

[dinovelvet]

You know what would have been a train wreck (speaking of blond gentlemen who could have taken the reins in 68).. Michael Caine.. can you imagine how horrible that would have been Toooooo curly and east enderish

I dunno, I wouldn't mind seeing what the Caine of GET CARTER ('71) could have done with DAF or LALD. Or, put him in OHMSS and you could have had the Daniel Craig/Casino Royale of the 60s.

I could dig DC in a McQueen biopic.

Hasnt Craig been rumored to be cast in a Steve McQueen biopic recently?

Yes, the rumor's floating. And DC could be great. Wild times, wild guy. Triumph and tragedy. Just think of the stars in his orbit: James Coburn, Charles Bronson, Yul Brynner, Bruce Lee...Wow.

The rumor was actually started by McQueen's widow, she wrote a book about their marriage and stated that if they made a movie, she wanted Daniel Craig to play Steve, and Eva Longoria to play her.

I thought that Reynolds was up for the role in LaLD, not OHMSS.

I believe you're right, Andrew. Reynolds claimed he was approached in the early 70s, when Sean was demanding more money. After OHMSS. The timing would have been perfect too, for at that point Eon was already moving into the lighter comic vein. And Reynolds had a sure touch with that.

I agree with that, Burt Reynolds would have worked perfectly for the Tom Mankiewicz DAF-LALD-TMWTGG camp trifecta.

[mrsbonds_ppk]

Steve is one of my favorite actors and the only thing he had going against him if he was to play James Bond was the fact that he was American IMO.

Steve was something else though. I heard stories that when he did The Towering Inferno with Paul Newman he wanted his name to appear first in the screen opening titles and Paul didn't object. Also in The Great Escape he felt like James Garner was upstaging him because he was so handsome in TCM's Steve McQueen The King of Cool biopic.