4014 replies to this topic

[MadeleineSwann]

Aaron Taylor Johnson, anyone? (He'll be about 29-30 when production for Bond 26 would begin if they stick to the three year production schedule and Craig leaves after Bond 25.

 

[Odd Jobbies]

I'm sure he's on the list, but he was fairly wooden in Godzilla, placing him in contention with Cavil if they wanna go the cheesy, posy route. Hoping not.

 

And having said that there's still plenty of time for him to prove his acting chops (number 1requirement for me after Craig raised those stakes so high). As for Cavil i imagine Superman will fill his roster til then and that's no platform for acting skills.

[MadeleineSwann]

Go watch Nowhere Boy, with Johnson as John Lennon, and then decide whether he is a "cheey, posy route".

Edited by MadeleineSwann, 03 January 2015 - 08:09 PM.

[Odd Jobbies]

 

 

I'm not sure what the rationale for his "not being right for Bond" is? Too tall, too blond, too good looking, too serious, not serious enough, etc., etc.

We've heard this all before with the annoucement of every new actor cast as Bond.

 

It has nothing to do with any of that.  For me, I just don't think he's a very good actor. 

 

With Chris Hemsworth there's not much to go on in terms of assessing his acting skills other than Rush and he surprised and impressed me as James Hunt.

 

Soon to be released is Michael Mann's hacking movie Blackhat.

 

I think that will show far more of his ability to carry a movie without wearing spandex. But Michael Mann being perhaps my favourite Hollywood filmmaker of all time i trust his choice to cast him (though maybe it was studio pressure!).

 

We'll see soon enough, but i'd put him on the list, just not as high as Tom Hardy or Dan Stevens..

 

Go watch Nowhere Boy, with Johnson as John Lennon, and then decide whether he is a "cheey, posy route".

 

Fair enough! I've put it on my list

 

So long as his wife doesn't direct him as Bond. But having just said that in such fool hardy haste, if Fifty Shades of Grey is good she may well be an ideal Bond director! I'm sure Eon would love the publicity.

Edited by Odd Jobbies, 03 January 2015 - 08:16 PM.

[tdalton]

There's no reason that he can't be judged on his ability in the superhero films.  Robert Downey Jr. gives good performances in the Iron Man films, even when the material is subpar (i.e Iron Man 2).  Bale gave good performances as Batman, Heath Ledger won an Oscar for the Joker, and so on. 

 

Quite honestly, I find him to be extremely wooden as an actor and would be very disappointed if EON were to hire him as Bond.  There are just so many better candidates out there for the part. 

[Odd Jobbies]

The fact that he's wooden in Thor, yet pretty good as James Hunt in Rush tells me i shouldn't be using Thor as a way to gauge is acting chops; need more to go, which is why i mentioned Blackhat.

 

Rush showed that he shouldn't be underestimated just 'cos he looks like a catalogue model. But, yes, on what we've seen so far there are better candidates out there.

 

For my money there are no better actors out there than Tom Hardy and if he were to want the role we fans would be very lucky indeed (as lucky as having Craig eventually take the role).

[tdalton]

I think that Thor is the perfect role to judge him in as an actor.  He's played the part a few times now, 3 if I'm not mistaken (Thor, Thor 2, and The Avengers) yet has shown little to no growth as an actor in that role.  He's been wooden from the get go in terms of that role, with only the role in Rush being touted as something in which he shows any kind of exceptional acting ability.

 

As for Blackhat, I'm interested in seeing it to determine if Michael Mann can recapture the glory days of Collateral and Heat.  He's made two other films aside from Blackhat since Collateral, both of which were very underwhelming: Miami Vice and Public Enemies.  Still, Mann does tend to work with those that are popular with the mainstream audiences at the time, so it's no surprise that he's delved into Marvel's stable of actors for Blackhat.  Will Smith was a big draw in the late 90s and early 2000s and found his way into Mann's Ali.  De Niro and Pacino were giants of the cinema in the 80s and 90s and featured in 1995's Heat.  Similar casting found Johnny Depp and Christian Bale in 2009's Public Enemies and Jamie Foxx was just breaking out as a huge star when he got his turn in Collateral.

 

That's not to say that Hemsworth can't perform well.  Nobody makes it into the business without having some semblance of talent, and a director like Mann or Ron Howard might be able to get a superior performance out of him in Blackhat and Rush, respectively, but most actors tend to raise their game in the presence of great directors like those. 

 

In short, I simply don't see Hemsworth as Bond.  When I look at him, I just don't see Bond.  Some actors are good enough to overcome that.  I remember seeing Craig for the first time in a still from Tomb Raider and laughing at the prospect of him as Bond.  But, after having seen some films of his, such as Layer Cake, I was completely sold on him as Bond because he had the acting chops that won me over.  Hemsworth has yet to prove, at least IMO, that he has that kind of ability.

[graric]

Aaron Taylor Johnson, anyone? (He'll be about 29-30 when production for Bond 26 would begin if they stick to the three year production schedule and Craig leaves after Bond 25.

 

 

I'd say at this point in the series I'd probably think 29-30 is probably 4 years too young for the role (even though Sean Connery was 32 when he started, and Geoerge Lazenby was 29, by Modern standards they both look much closer to their mid to late 30's, and casting a new Bond just out of his 20's would look especially jarring unless they went with another full on reboot.)

[dtuba]

I'm sure he's on the list, but he was fairly wooden in Godzilla, placing him in contention with Cavil if they wanna go the cheesy, posy route. Hoping not.

 

 

No, he was underused in Godzilla. That movie had a fantastic human cast, including Johnson, David Strathairn, Ken Watanabe, etc. But director Gareth Edwards did a good job with giant monster action and not a clue how to properly direct humans.

 

But can he do a British accent?

And, please no Hemsworth. Too hunky, too pretty, and too Aussie.

Edited by dtuba, 04 January 2015 - 01:50 PM.

[MadeleineSwann]

 

I'm sure he's on the list, but he was fairly wooden in Godzilla, placing him in contention with Cavil if they wanna go the cheesy, posy route. Hoping not.

 

 

No, he was underused in Godzilla. That movie had a fantastic human cast, including Johnson, David Strathairn, Ken Watanabe, etc. But director Gareth Edwards did a good job with giant monster action and not a clue how to properly direct humans.

 

But can he do a British accent?

And, please no Hemsworth. Too hunky, too pretty, and too Aussie.

 

Aaron Johnson is British.

 

Edited by MadeleineSwann, 04 January 2015 - 02:40 PM.

[tdalton]

 

I'm sure he's on the list, but he was fairly wooden in Godzilla, placing him in contention with Cavil if they wanna go the cheesy, posy route. Hoping not.

 

 

No, he was underused in Godzilla. That movie had a fantastic human cast, including Johnson, David Strathairn, Ken Watanabe, etc. But director Gareth Edwards did a good job with giant monster action and not a clue how to properly direct humans.

 

But can he do a British accent?

And, please no Hemsworth. Too hunky, too pretty, and too Aussie.

 

 

I'll agree with Odd Jobbies and say that he was extremely wooden in Godzilla.  There was no way that he was underused.  He was the human lead of the film and was in the vast majority of the scenes in a 2+ hour film.  Yes, he had poor material to work with, but so did Bryan Cranston and he still turned in a terrific performance.  Johnson simply didn't have the ability to carry the film on his shoulders, something he would have to do if he were to be Bond, a part which I don't think he would be particularly good in.

 

I would agree that Godzilla had a great human cast, and while they were, with the notable exception of Johnson, underused, none of them (aside from Cranston and Binoche) were able to rise above their poor material to give anything resembling a memorable performance.  Now, Edwards should have given them better material to work with, but considering what a trainwreck of a film Godzilla is, that was never going to happen.  There have been plenty of bad films where good actors have risen above bad material to give good performances, and that happened in Godzilla with Cranston and Binoche, but not with the rest of the cast, Johnson included.

Edited by tdalton, 04 January 2015 - 06:54 PM.

[Blofeld's Cat]

Too hunky, too pretty, and too Aussie.

 

A triple-threat curse we Aussies have to bare.

[Skylla]

Aaron Taylor Johnson, anyone? (He'll be about 29-30 when production for Bond 26 would begin if they stick to the three year production schedule and Craig leaves after Bond 25.

 

He was very good in Nowhere Boy, funny in Kick Ass and good in O. Stones Savages. I would like to see him as Bond if they go the bit lighter Brosnan/Moore route. If it´s for Bond 27 he could be perfect (looking a bit like Lazenby and stranglin´ some girls like Sir Sean ), but I guess he would be too famous by then.... 

[sharpshooter]

A big no to Aaron Taylor Johnson. I find him incredibly wooden as an actor and without presence. Two things a Bond shouldn't be described as.

[tdalton]

A big no to Aaron Taylor Johnson. I find him incredibly wooden as an actor and without presence. Two things a Bond shouldn't be described as.

 

Agreed, although I did think he did a pretty good job in Kick-Ass.  Still, those are two films in which he was somewhat carried by Chloe Grace Moretz.

 

Outside of those two films, though, he's an extremely wooden actor who would, IMO, not make for a very good Bond.

Edited by tdalton, 04 January 2015 - 11:19 PM.

[Odd Jobbies]

I think that Thor is the perfect role to judge him in as an actor.  He's played the part a few times now, 3 if I'm not mistaken (Thor, Thor 2, and The Avengers) yet has shown little to no growth as an actor in that role.  He's been wooden from the get go in terms of that role, with only the role in Rush being touted as something in which he shows any kind of exceptional acting ability.

 

As for Blackhat, I'm interested in seeing it to determine if Michael Mann can recapture the glory days of Collateral and Heat.  He's made two other films aside from Blackhat since Collateral, both of which were very underwhelming: Miami Vice and Public Enemies.  Still, Mann does tend to work with those that are popular with the mainstream audiences at the time, so it's no surprise that he's delved into Marvel's stable of actors for Blackhat.  Will Smith was a big draw in the late 90s and early 2000s and found his way into Mann's Ali.  De Niro and Pacino were giants of the cinema in the 80s and 90s and featured in 1995's Heat.  Similar casting found Johnny Depp and Christian Bale in 2009's Public Enemies and Jamie Foxx was just breaking out as a huge star when he got his turn in Collateral.

 

That's not to say that Hemsworth can't perform well.  Nobody makes it into the business without having some semblance of talent, and a director like Mann or Ron Howard might be able to get a superior performance out of him in Blackhat and Rush, respectively, but most actors tend to raise their game in the presence of great directors like those. 

 

In short, I simply don't see Hemsworth as Bond.  When I look at him, I just don't see Bond.  Some actors are good enough to overcome that.  I remember seeing Craig for the first time in a still from Tomb Raider and laughing at the prospect of him as Bond.  But, after having seen some films of his, such as Layer Cake, I was completely sold on him as Bond because he had the acting chops that won me over.  Hemsworth has yet to prove, at least IMO, that he has that kind of ability.

I think Daniel Day-Lewis would struggle to grow as an actor in the role of Thor....!

 

As for Michael Mann, you've made the point for me that he gets great performances out of mainstream actors (Smith, Cruise), which is why i'm reserving judgment on Hemsworth until seeing Blackhat.

 

But, as it sounds from your wording that you're yet to see the film Rush then i highly recommend it - i'm no F1 enthusiast, but the movie is superb, with 2 great performances from Hemsworth and Daniel Bruhl (who'd make a great Bond villain - wouldn't that be odd if Hemsworth was Bond?). It's 2hrs well spent

 

I'm not really in the 'Hemsworth For Bond' camp right now, but to judge an actor on one role and that being one wearing spandex is not a path i choose to pursue. Sure, Downey is great as Stark, but he's been served by far better dialogue and his vast talents turn any role into his own personal showreel.

 

 

 

Off-topic, this Marvel chat has brought Shane Black to mind; screen-writing supremo of the 80's, no one out there writes sharper dialogue (perhaps Tarantino is on par) and now he's shown he's a top tear action director, bringing wit and irony back with aplomb to the tiring genre (his work with Ben Kingsley in Iron Man 3 was IMHO the most purely entertaining cinema of 2013).

 

So i'd love to see him write and direct a Bond movie. Don't get put off by the comic book movie - he wrote Lethal Weapon, The Last Boy Scout (a highly under-seen 80's gem), The Long Kiss Goodnight and wrote/directed Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (also under-seen, fantastic and a Bond reference-title t'boot).

...so did Bryan Cranston and he still turned in a terrific performance.

The man is a thespian god

 

Heisenberg was the Blofeld of TV.

Edited by Odd Jobbies, 04 January 2015 - 11:35 PM.

[tdalton]

I don't have any plans to see Rush.  I like a good race film, but I tend to avoid Ron Howard films.  I've never been a fan of his, although I do acknowledge that he's one of the better directors out there and has made a couple of films that I enjoy (i.e. Frost/Nixon).

 

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on Thor.  I do think that it's a role that one can judge an actor in.  It's clear from those films that he's not in the same league as people like Christian Bale or a good number of the other actors who have populated Nolan's Batman films, nor is he in the same league as Robert Downey Jr. in his Iron Man franchise.  I think really good actors can transcend the fact that they're playing what might otherwise be thought to be a silly or unrealistic character and still turn in great performances.  Bale did that as Batman, Ledger did it as his version of the Joker, and Downey Jr. has done it as Iron Man.  Hemsworth has yet to do that as Thor.

 

IMO, if an actor is going to sign on to make one role such a huge part of their career, as the Marvel actors do when they sign their ridiculously long contracts, then I think that it's fair to judge them on their work in that single role, since it will make up a significant portion of their resume when it's all said and done with.

[Skylla]

I don't have any plans to see Rush.  I like a good race film, but I tend to avoid Ron Howard films.  I've never been a fan of his, although I do acknowledge that he's one of the better directors out there and has made a couple of films that I enjoy (i.e. Frost/Nixon).

 

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on Thor.  I do think that it's a role that one can judge an actor in.  It's clear from those films that he's not in the same league as people like Christian Bale or a good number of the other actors who have populated Nolan's Batman films, nor is he in the same league as Robert Downey Jr. in his Iron Man franchise.  I think really good actors can transcend the fact that they're playing what might otherwise be thought to be a silly or unrealistic character and still turn in great performances.  Bale did that as Batman, Ledger did it as his version of the Joker, and Downey Jr. has done it as Iron Man.  Hemsworth has yet to do that as Thor.

 

IMO, if an actor is going to sign on to make one role such a huge part of their career, as the Marvel actors do when they sign their ridiculously long contracts, then I think that it's fair to judge them on their work in that single role, since it will make up a significant portion of their resume when it's all said and done with.

You really should watch Rush, it´s a very good racing film and it has a tremendous performance from Daniel Brühl  as Nikki Lauda. I met Lauda personally in Kitzbühel end of the 90s and Brühl is so good, you forget it´s not the real guy...

[Odd Jobbies]

tdalton, I totally agree that Bale and Downey Jnr gave great 'spandex' performances. But they had solid scripts, great dialogue and great directors.

Thor has had generic, cheesy dialogue by comparison, weak stories and Branagh directing the first- he proved again with Jack Ryan that he makes dull action movies. Next director had done good work on game of thrones, but this was his first big budget movie- his only other movie made almost 20 years earlier. And to be honest Thor 2 was mediocre, again with little for an actor to get their chops around, unlike the centre staging and crispy dialogue of iron man and batman.

As for the Avengers, Whedon is a fantastic writer of this material, but watch it an tell me the script doesn't hugely favour iron man, hulk, Huddleston. Even Johansen has more screen time than Thor, or at least better dialogue.

Comparing Downey and Bale's roles to hems worth' sad acting platforms is comparing apples and oranges.

You mention Heath Ledger's Jiker as a comparison... C'mon, that was a role many actors were fighting over (I don't think quite as many were over the role of Thor). And I'm certainly not going to suggest that Hemmsorth, or any other possible Bond 7, bar Tom Hardy) is anywhere near as talented an actor as he was, RIP.

[Durand Phoenix]

I'll probably be shot for this, but I reckon Andrew Garfield (Spider-Man) would be a great choice.

He's around 31 now, so another 4-6 years or so if Daniel Craig does one or two more.

 

[JCRendle]

I'll probably be shot for this, but I reckon Andrew Garfield (Spider-Man) would be a great choice.

He's around 31 now, so another 4-6 years or so if Daniel Craig does one or two more.

 

Another actor who has been in a too high profile role to play Bond in the future...

[AMC Hornet]

What part of the British Commonwealth is he from?

 

EDIT: Just looked him up. Okay, dual citizen, born in California and raised in Surrey (almost the opposite of Pierce Brosnsan).

 

As I suggested a few pages back, there must be more to playing Bond than looking good in a tux.

 

Still, ask me again when Garfield looks a little more grown-up.

[Durand Phoenix]

He was raised in Surrey and has dual citizenship of the US and the UK...

 

'Garfield was born in Los Angeles. His mother is from Essex, England, and his father, Richard Garfield, is from California. Garfield's paternal grandparents were also from the United Kingdom.'

 

Bond's mother was Swiss! 

[tdalton]

No to Garfield.  Too high profile first of all, but doesn't have any kind of physical presence to him that would indicate that he could pull off the role of Bond.

 

Then there's the Sony factor.  If Sony is still involved with Bond after Craig leaves (a big if, considering the troubles the studio currently finds themselves in), then I couldn't see Garfield getting in the door even if he was a suitable candidate.  If the reports from the last month are true regarding Sony wanting him out of the Spiderman role, I can't see them allowing him to take the keys to an even bigger franchise.

[genuinefelixleiter]

Garfield would make a good replacement for the new "Q", if necessary.

 

ATJ is an interesting choice, hadn't thought of him. He might be good for Bond and he's a skilled actor; was excellent as the young John Lennon.

 

Rush is a very good film and Hemsworth delivers a fine performance. As for being "wooden" as Thor, are you familiar with the source material?

Thor in the comics is depicted as very wooden. A stiff, elitist a$$hole, complete with a few daddy issues. Thor learns in trials by fire what it takes to be a real warrior.

Hemsworth was really spot on in his performance.

 

As for the Aussies, sorry bro, I got a soft spot there (not what you're thinking!!) Spent time in Sydney, Bondi Beach, Melbourne and have relatives that live in Perth.

Aussies have great spirit. Love it down under!

[SecretAgentFan]

I love Garfield - but he´s no Bond.

 

However, I could imagine Christian Bale.  With Nolan directing a post-Craig film, introducing Bale as the next Bond would be very interesting.  For me, at least.

[coco1997]

However, I could imagine Christian Bale.  With Nolan directing a post-Craig film, introducing Bale as the next Bond would be very interesting.  For me, at least.

Bale is certainly interesting idea. He would be the first Oscar winner cast as Bond.

 

The thought of one man playing both James Bond and Batman blows my mind.

[AdaShelby]

Christian Bale is too up himself for me to consider him as Bond. I think the casting would go to his head.

[tdalton]

I don't think that I could get behind a Nolan/Bale reunion in a Bond film.  Of the two, I'd be much more inclined to want Bale to take on the role of Bond than I would be for Nolan to direct a Bond film, but neither of them would be my first option.  But, as for Bale being too full of himself to be Bond, I think that would make him a better candidate.  Bond is, and should be, an arrogant jerk at times.  That was one of the good things about the early days of the franchise, where Connery's Bond just knew that he was God's gift to humanity and acted accordingly.

[JCRendle]

If people are throwing names of people who have been in big name productions, how about The Hobbit's Richard Armitage, 6'2.5" or Aidan Turner, 5'11"?