# Pierce Brosnan Fired from 007 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 18, 2005, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535 "2005-08-18T03:20:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/21 "2005-08-18T17:19:41Z")
American actor James Brolin screentested as 007 in Octopussy. [http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:NDg91Cdai8wJ:www.007forever.com/actors/octopussy.html+james+brolin+octopussy&hl=en](http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:NDg91Cdai8wJ:www.007forever.com/actors/octopussy.html+james+brolin+octopussy&hl=en) ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/22 "2005-08-18T17:25:12Z")
> [@Phase42](#): > > What about Jude Law? Or was he even considered? The first time I ever saw Law, I thought, “This guy would make a great James Bond”. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/23 "2005-08-18T17:56:54Z")
I like Jude Law but not for the Bond role. He’s far too pretty. Bond is ruggedly hansome not pretty. Law is far too skinny and lanky as well. Though Bond was never a beefcake, he wasn’t rail thin either. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/24 "2005-08-18T18:02:30Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > I like Jude Law but not for the Bond role. He’s far too pretty. Bond is ruggedly hansome not pretty. Law is far too skinny and lanky as well. Though Bond was never a beefcake, he wasn’t rail thin either. I completely agree. My vote would go for Clive Owen. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/25 "2005-08-18T18:40:05Z")
> [@The Gaspode](#): > > [The vegetable got its name from his family name.](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0110482/bio) Not quite… > [@](#): > > The word broccoli comes from the Latin brachium and Italian brocco meaning ‘arm’, or ‘branch’. > **[Broccoli](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broccoli)** > > Broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) is an edible green plant in the cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus Brassica) whose large flowering head, stalk and small associated leaves are eaten as a vegetable. Broccoli is classified in the Italica cultivar group of the species Brassica oleracea. Broccoli has large flower heads, usually dark green, arranged in a tree-like structure branching out from a thick stalk which is usually light green. The mass of flower heads is surrounded by leave... ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/26 "2005-08-18T18:43:53Z")
I believe the claim about the relationship between the vegetable and the family name came from Cubby Brocolli himself, and he’s a known bullshit artist, so … ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/27 "2005-08-18T19:01:35Z")
Brosnan is a perfect James Bond, much like Sean Connery was. Clive Owen could at best be another Timothy Dalton. I really can’t think of any definitively Brittish actors in their late 30s-40s who would be a good bond. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/28 "2005-08-18T19:10:02Z")
Need a shout out from our Brit Dopers. Possibly the next Bond would come from TV as Moore did. Only advantage Moore had was I think the Saint was shown in the US before he got the gig. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/29 "2005-08-18T19:12:29Z")
Both Owen and Dalton have a similar stone-faced look. Somehow they’re not quite as expresseive. I think one of the reasons it might be difficult to find a new Bond that is satisfactory is because the character itself – which was a fantasy figure from the beginning – has become a collection of odd traits that doesn’t ring true – an upper-class personality and sensibility with working class roots - a middle-aged man in an athletic role - a misogynist hero - an undercover agent who wouldn’t blend in anywhere he would be needed in a modern spy situation … ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/30 "2005-08-18T19:14:04Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > But he moved to England as a child and has spent most of his life there. I read in an interview that he cannot recreate his “real” Irish accent. So I’ll count him as an Irish-born Englishman. So what accent was he using [here](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0298856/) or [here](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119772/)? ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/31 "2005-08-18T19:19:29Z")
> [@](#): > > They called his bluff. I don’t think it was a bluff. I think he really didn’t want to do it anymore, and he’s now well-known and rich enough to do what he wants. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/32 "2005-08-18T19:19:46Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Brosnan is a perfect James Bond, much like Sean Connery was. Perfect Bond? No way. Connery was the perfect Bond. You need to be smooth, classy but have an undercurrent of ruthlessness about them that tells everyone that you’d cut their throat without thinking twice if you needed to. While he’s not British, I think Russell Crow would be excellent - although, I doubt he would do it. I think Denzel Washington would be such a remarkably original person to cast that someone ought to give thought to it. He would be the perfect person to breathe a bit of life into a stale role. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/33 "2005-08-18T19:21:11Z")
> [@ArchiveGuy](#): > > So what accent was he using [here](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0298856/) or [here](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119772/)? Presumably a “fake” Irish accent. I can’t remember the name of the magazine, but it was _Irish Life_ or something with “Irish” or “Ireland” in the name. There was a long Q&A with Brosnan and (lamenting somewhat) said his original Irish accent was completely lost to him and implying that the English R.P. accent had become his natural one. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/34 "2005-08-18T19:26:40Z")
I like Clive Owen. He’s not as pretty as Brosnan, and has the requisite air of actual menace that nobody since Connery has had. Denisof could pull it off, and I think that the success that comes with being Bond (or at least the steady work) would overcome any objections he might have over being typecast as a Brit. And maybe then we’d get some hot-and-heavy Bond Girl scenes with his wife. Denzel, smooth as he is (and much as I’d like to see a fellow Fordham guy get some work) will never be bond for the same reason that Hayley Joel Osment will never be Akira, Jean-Claude Van Damme will never be Pancho Villa, and Ashton Kutcher will never be Shaft. But let me again reiterate that Alexis Denisof as bond means a higher likelihood of Alyson Hannigan being a Bond Girl. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/35 "2005-08-18T19:27:04Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > My vote would go for Clive Owen. I thought Clive Owen had the role already? Isn’t he locked up to play Bond sometime in the future? If it’s not going to be Owen, how about [James Purefoy](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0700856/)? ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/36 "2005-08-18T19:35:30Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > I thought Clive Owen had the role already? Isn’t he locked up to play Bond sometime in the future? Never mind, [seems I was misremembering](http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/entertainment/gossip/12409633.htm). That link posits [Daniel Craig](http://www.imdb.com/gallery/granitz/3025/Events/3025/DanielCrai_Wargo_4839892_400.jpg?path=pgallery&path_key=Craig,%20Daniel%20(I)) as the next Bond. ---
**Author:** ![Sensibility](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@Sensibility](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sensibility)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/37 "2005-08-18T19:40:14Z")
Typical! Brosnan was UNDOUBTEDLY the most GORGEOUS Bond - and the most BOND Bond in my view! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/38 "2005-08-18T19:40:31Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > a middle-aged man in an athletic role - a misogynist hero - an undercover agent who wouldn’t blend in anywhere he would be needed in a modern spy situation … That’s a bit harsh, isn’t it? I think these days, if a guy keeps himself in shape, he’s okay doing athletic roles right into his 50’s. Arnold Schwarzenegger is pushing 60. Lance Armstrong is going to be 34 pretty soon. At what age do you consider a man to be middle aged and implausibly athletic? Misogynist? Also a bit harsh. Hasn’t Bond more or less evolved past his Cro Magnon roots lately? Anyway, I think Hugh Grant could breath some new life into the character. Gerard Butler could be cool, too. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/39 "2005-08-18T19:40:35Z")
> [@](#): > > Denzel, smooth as he is (and much as I’d like to see a fellow Fordham guy get some work) will never be bond for the same reason that Hayley Joel Osment will never be Akira, Jean-Claude Van Damme will never be Pancho Villa, and Ashton Kutcher will never be Shaft. … why a Swede like Warner Oland could never play Charlie Chan and why a Kansan like Wallace Beery could never play Pancho Villa … I can see possibilities for a black James Bond. Why the heck not? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2005, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535/40 "2005-08-18T19:45:11Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > That’s a bit harsh, isn’t it? I think these days, if a guy keeps himself in shape, he’s okay doing athletic roles right into his 50’s. Arnold Schwarzenegger is pushing 60. I was thinking more of the realities of the situation rather than the casting aspect. If you were writing a superspy story today, you’d most likely make him 24 than 42. The gentleman spy who actually gets into physical heroics was never really true-to-life archetype and has become almost ludicrous today. Real gentlemen spies were people like Kim Philby, who didn’t lep about, and who were actually working for the other side. Which is one of the main points – an effective spy is more likely to be of the ethnicity of your enemy, not yourself. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pierce-brosnan-fired-from-007/317535.md?page=3)