![]() There was some speculation about Connery’s successor when he took a good pal to the London premiere screening: Roger Moore. Instead, Connery – heftier and obviously bewigged – returned for one last go in an “official” Bond film. Moore was in the running for the follow-up film, 1971’s Diamonds Are Forever, but missed out due to his commitments on ITV action series, The Persuaders. You should have killed him and saved her.” Moore overheard the producer Bob Goldstein tell Saltzman, “You made a mistake, Harry. It ends sombrely, with the murder of Bond’s new bride. He attended a preview of the George Lazenby-starring On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. He had been chums with Sean Connery since the early 1960s and played cards with EON producing partners, Albert ‘Cubby’ Broccoli and Harry Saltzman.Īnd Moore saw the trouble with recasting Bond first-hand. “I certainly wasn’t aware of that, nor was I approached,” he wrote in his brilliantly titled memoir, My Word Is My Bond. Roger Moore was apparently in the frame for Bond as early as 1962 – back when EON Productions was casting for the first film, Dr. “But in fact, it was Live and Let Die that reassessed what a James Bond film could be.” “Daniel Craig’s debut Casino Royale is often described as the film that reinvented Bond,” says Matthew Field, co-author of Bond film history, Some Kind of Hero. The series was trying to catch up with the times with a one-off foray into Blaxploitation, but combined with series-best staples: Jane Seymour as Solitaire, a top-tier Bond girl a speedboat chase that set a new standard for stunts and the adrenaline-jolting theme from Paul McCartney and Wings. Also interesting is the fact that Bond was past his cultural prime – as perfectly personified by Moore, the dads’ favourite Bond. The film – now marking its 50th anniversary – isn’t the most remarkable of Roger’s Bonds, but it’s certainly significant: the first of Moore’s record seven outings as 007 and the first truly successful (in box office terms) “new” Bond. He had come close to playing James Bond before.Ī year later, in the summer of 1973, Moore made his Bond debut with Live and Let Die. It was just a magical moment.”įor Moore – dancing about and singing “I’m James Bond! I’m James Bond!” – the 007 deal was several years in the making. I’ve just signed the contract with Cubby Broccoli!’ We danced around the floor like little kids and had a glass of champagne. ![]() ![]() He said, ‘You’re now looking at James Bond. “He said, ‘Rocky, Les, quick, hurry up!’ We ran down after him – we thought he was in trouble. “All of a sudden, Roger’s head popped around the corner,” recalls Taylor. Taylor and Les Crawford – then Moore’s personal stuntman – were walking through the corridors at Pinewood Studios. Rocky Taylor, Moore’s good friend and occasional stunt double, remembers the day well. Roger Moore was giddy as a champagne-quaffing schoolboy when he landed the role of James Bond.
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