20 replies to this topic

[Mr. Blofeld]

Which of these two '80s Felix Leiters do you like more?

I think Terry had the right image of Felix, whereas Hedison had the better personality. Hedison may have looked like Grandpa Morrie by that point, but Terry was a freakin' 2x4!

I'll go with Hedison, as, although his maiming scene brings back unwanted memories of his role in The Fly ("HELP MEEEE!!!" ), at least he wasn't John "World War III" Terry.

Anyone else?

[Mister Asterix]

I’m expecting a slaughter.

One vote for Hedison.

[Righty007]

Warning: My answer to this question my shock you.

If we were considering both of Hedison's outings, then I'd say Hedison gets my vote hands down.

However, since we're just considering his Licence to Kill performance, I'm going to have to say John "World War III" Terry is the best Leiter of the 1980s.

Hedison was just a little too old to portray Leiter in 1989. Felix Leiter is supposed to be around Bond's age.

[sthgilyadgnivileht]

John Terry

[Tybre]

Hedison may have been a little too old to be playing opposite Dalton, but at least he had personality. Terry comes across as bland, bored, and more like he's just reading the lines off a card somewhere off screen than genuinely delivering a performance, imo. My vote is Hedison.

[DaveBond21]

Hedison.

Like I said in another post, sometimes they get Felix right - Lord, Van Nutter, Hedison, Wright

...and sometimes they get him wrong - Linder, Burton, Terry.

[Qwerty]

Hedison by far.

[Double-Oh Agent]

Well, David Hedison is my favorite Felix Leiter so my vote obviously goes to him.

[Conlazmoodalbrocra]

DAVID HEDISON

[Cruiserweight]

Hedison

[Safari Suit]

Hedison, but it's not really a fair match as Terry had, what, a minute of screen time? Not much anyway.

[O.H.M.S.S.]

John Terry.

[Double-Oh Agent]

Hedison.

Like I said in another post, sometimes they get Felix right - Lord, Van Nutter, Hedison, Wright

...and sometimes they get him wrong - Linder, Burton, Terry.

And where would you classify the other '80s Felix Leiter, Bernie Casey?

[[dark]]

I love Terry's work elsewhere (chiefly Full Metal Jacket, 24 and Lost), but it's got to be Hedison.

[MicroGlobeOne]

One of these Leiters had personality and presence, the other did not. This is not, mind you, entirely the fault of the actors involved. It's down to the script and the story.

David Hedison gets my vote. Prior to Jeffrey Wright, he was the best on-screen Leiter.

[Righty007]

Prior to Jeffrey Wright, he [Hedison] was the best on-screen Leiter.

I concur, brother.

[DR76]

Hmmmm . . . John Terry. I like both men, but there were moments when Hedison had a tendency to ham it up.

[daltonnery]

there were moments when Hedison had a tendency to ham it up.

An example of this would be when he shouts at Sanchez, "I'll see you in hell!" The hamminess of his delivery of those lines makes me laugh, even though the scene is meant to be very grim (Hedison getting maimed). That said, I still prefer Hedison over Terry as, IMO Hedison is more likeable, has more personality, and makes you care about Felix more than I think Terry would have if he had played the part in LTK. Hedison is one of my favorite Felix Leiters along with Jack Lord and Jeffrey Wright.

Edited by daltonnery, 30 July 2009 - 08:46 PM.

[dee-bee-five]

A tougher call than I would have thought. I will have to go with Hedison because of his having been my favourite Leiter up to that point (for me he's the closest to James Garner, the best Leiter we never had). But I actually like Terry a lot.

I have to add, though, that Jeffrey Wright is now my favourite Leiter by a long way. Hedison and Wright are, of course, the only two actors to date who've played the character more than once.

[CaptainPower]

Jeffrey Wright

[PrinceKamalKhan]

I will have to go with Hedison because of his having been my favourite Leiter up to that point (for me he's the closest to James Garner, the best Leiter we never had).

Garner as Leiter opposite Moore as Bond would've been great. A Maverick cousins reunion.

As for the main topic,

Definitely Hedison although Terry isn't bad. After 14 years and 6 official Bond films without the character, it was great to have the character back. It's good for Dalton to have Leiter appear in 100% of his Bond films. Let's see if Craig gets that same distinction.