11 replies to this topic

[JohnnyWalker]

So I hadn't even heard of Michael Billington until very recently, but after reading that he was like a back up in case Roger Moore couldn't/wouldn't do it anymore, I've been very intrigued. So I looked him up and saw he had a very Bond look, a little bit George Lazenby and even a little Roger Moore.

The only thing I've really seen him in is The Spy Who Loved Me, where I guess he's a Russian version of Bond, or it's nothing like that. But what I'm wondering is, what kind of Bond would he have been? Would he be a good choice? Would he have been a more convincing tough guy than Moore?

[AMC Hornet]

With thst bearskin rug for a chest?

You bet.

[JohnnyWalker]

He said he would have been groomed if he got the part.

[Trevelyan 006]

It's Funny This Is Brought Up, Because When I First Saw 'The Spy Who Loved Me' When I Was Younger,
I Led Myself To Believe He Was Bond During That Scene.

The Scene After Is When I Realized Bond Was The Man In The Banana-Yellow Ski Suit.

[AMC Hornet]

Oliver Tobias was also touted as Moore's likeky replacement in FYEO. He'd even been heard telling people that he would be the next 007.

His screen credentials? The biggest thing he'd done by then was to star opposite Joan Collins as the title character in The Stud.

Romancing Joan Collins when she was in her mid-40s? That would take some acting chops!

Edited by AMC Hornet, 04 November 2011 - 10:34 PM.

[Peckinpah1976]

It's Funny This Is Brought Up, Because When I First Saw 'The Spy Who Loved Me' When I Was Younger,
I Led Myself To Believe He Was Bond During That Scene.

It's clearly the intention of that scene to make the audience believe that Billington is Bond, so in effect he is playing a Russian mirror image of 007.

[Terry]

So I hadn't even heard of Michael Billington until very recently, but after reading that he was like a back up in case Roger Moore couldn't/wouldn't do it anymore, I've been very intrigued. So I looked him up and saw he had a very Bond look, a little bit George Lazenby and even a little Roger Moore.

The only thing I've really seen him in is The Spy Who Loved Me, where I guess he's a Russian version of Bond, or it's nothing like that. But what I'm wondering is, what kind of Bond would he have been? Would he be a good choice? Would he have been a more convincing tough guy than Moore?

Michael Billington was tested many times for the Bond role, first around the 1972 LIVE AND LET DIE timeline. He tested me many of the actresses in Paris for MOONRAKER (Lois Chiles was not his favorite), was called for both

[Terry]

So I hadn't even heard of Michael Billington until very recently, but after reading that he was like a back up in case Roger Moore couldn't/wouldn't do it anymore, I've been very intrigued. So I looked him up and saw he had a very Bond look, a little bit George Lazenby and even a little Roger Moore.

The only thing I've really seen him in is The Spy Who Loved Me, where I guess he's a Russian version of Bond, or it's nothing like that. But what I'm wondering is, what kind of Bond would he have been? Would he be a good choice? Would he have been a more convincing tough guy than Moore?

Michael Billington is reportedly the actor who tested for Bond the most times. He was first looked at when they were casting LIVE AND LET DIE. He tested with potential Bond girls in Paris for MOONRAKER (Lois Chiles was not his favorite). He was called up for both FOR YOUR EYES ONLY and OCTOPUSSY when negociations with Roger Moore were going badly. He dated Barbara Broccoli for a period of time and they planned to use some of his screentest for the MOONRAKER DVD extras but something derailed that idea. You can find screentest photos for his OCTOPUSSY tests on ebay many times. I traded some emails with him and he was planning to write a book. Sadly, cancer ended his life before he could get it done. My guess he would have been a Bond in the Dalton, Craig image with finding a proper balance of humour being the issue. He made a spy movie titled K.G.B. that is worth watching if you would like to see what his Bond might have been like. Nice fellow.

[JohnnyWalker]

Thanks for the suggestion, I looked up that movie. I don't know how I'll get to see it but I'll look out for it.

[David Schofield]

I think Billington kept his flame burning for years with his "almost Bond" stories. Isn't he on record somewhere on the Net as saying he was ready to fly to Greece for FYEO when Rog, as usual, caved in? I'm sure he says he was costume fitted, and there are what he claims to be publicity shots of him in a tux out there he suggests EON were going to release had Rog not pitched up.

Frankly, Billington is one of those guys who seems to have aged badly, a bit like Connery; at 41ish in 1981 I'm not sure he would have been EON's ideal replacement for Rog... And itsv funny that two years later it was James Brolin, an American, EON were ready to go with when Rog once again was playing his usual chase me games?

Saw him in the pretty directionless "KGB" movie. Erm...

Reckon he'd have done Bond as macho, early 70s Burt Reynolds action type had he got LALD. Had he succeeded Rog, I suspect we'd have got similar a Connery-Moore hybrid as we got later with Brosnan.

Not convinced he'd ever have worked as Bond, sadly.

Now, what about David Warbeck.

[David_M]

If you ever get a chance to see the old Gerry Anderson SF show "UFO" (currently on DVD), be sure and do so for a look at Billington in "action hero" mode. He certainly had the looks and build for Bond, and was convincing in fight scenes. I think he also could have pulled off the "intense killer" routine, and was smooth with the ladies. Having said all that, however, there's a certain something missing in his performances, an extra spark or screen presence to elevate him from generic hunk to movie star. In fairness, that may have been the fault of the scripts, which seemed aimed at positioning him as a sex symbol while co-star Ed Bishop most of the meaty, dramatic stuff.

I've always wanted to see "The Onedin Line" in case it gives a better idea of his acting range. Plus I hear it's got Jane Seymour in it.

[Major Tallon]

I enjoyed "The Onedin Line," which did indeed feature Jane Seymour. I don't think the series strengthened Billington's claim on the Bond role, but he was cast in an unsympathetic part as a good-looking, but morally weak, rogue.