# Who was the best Bond? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [September 10, 2020, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259 "2020-09-10T13:20:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/41 "2020-09-10T23:10:10Z")
Really? You couldn’t figure that out from context? Well no point trying to explain it to you then. ---
**Author:** ![cormac262](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f14d63/32.png) [@cormac262](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cormac262)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/42 "2020-09-10T23:14:25Z")
Connery. Without any doubt. And here’s the best way to look at it: without Connery’s Bond there NEVER would have been Moore, Dalton, Brosnan, or Craig. Think about it. Connery set the “standard” and the lead for all the others to follow. If ANY of these others would have started the franchise, it never would have had the longevity that it did/does. People went to all the post-Connery Bond movies just to see, and be reminded of the Connery Bond (although it took quite a bit of imagination for a lot). I can remember seeing the first Moore movies and thinking WWCD ? It was mentioned that Brosnan got the “Phatom Menace”/“ST V” of Bond scripts, but I would argue that Moore had to make the best of some of the lamest plots (“A View to a Kill”, “Octopussy” ???) But he did have the one “Rogue One” script which is by far his best Bond: “For Your Eyes Only”. I like Dalton and rank him #2. But a new generation had gotten used to the silliness of the Moore Bonds that I don’t think Dalton got a fair deal. He actually did his “mission” as opposed to just acting smug all the time. I think if he could have been swapped in (along with new writers) a handful of movies earlier, he would have done well. ---
**Author:** ![Boycott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boycott/32/6741_2.png) [@Boycott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boycott)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/43 "2020-09-10T23:15:57Z")
Fleming initially wasn’t in total agreement with Connery’s casting because Connery didn’t look the way James Bond ought to look. > James Bond’s creator, [Ian Fleming](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Fleming), originally doubted Connery’s casting, saying, “He’s not what I envisioned of James Bond looks”, and “I’m looking for Commander Bond and not an overgrown stunt-man”, adding that Connery (muscular, 6’ 2", and a Scot) was unrefined.[[52]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sean_Connery#cite_note-Bond_background-52) Fleming’s girlfriend [Blanche Blackwell](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blanche_Blackwell) told him that Connery had the requisite sexual charisma, and Fleming changed his mind after the successful _Dr. No_ première. He was so impressed, he wrote Connery’s heritage into the character. In his 1964 novel _[You Only Live Twice](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Only_Live_Twice_(novel))_ , Fleming wrote that Bond’s father was Scottish and from [Glencoe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glencoe,_Highland) Roger Moore definitely softened the image of the character and the film (evens the villains became a bit silly) but a lot of people grew up with him since he had the job for so long. Seven films in 12 years finishing at 58 years of age while Craig at age 52 is about to release his fourth and final film after 14 years. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2020, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/44 "2020-09-11T00:27:20Z")
Wikipedia has a list of actors considered for the role of James Bond: > **[List of actors considered for the James Bond character](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_actors_considered_for_the_James_Bond_character)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > This is a list of actors who were considered for the role of James Bond, both officially (auditioned by the film producers) and unofficially (supported by fans and celebrities) but did not play the role of agent 007. The separate list of James Bond films details the actors who have played the role of agent 007. > Actors who have come under consideration for the role of James Bond but were not chosen. > Live and Let Die Interesting the list says that Ian Fleming’s personal choices for the role were either David Niven or Richard Todd. Some interesting names are on there: Mel Gibson, Dick Van Dyke(?), James Brolin, Clint Eastwood(?), Burt Reynolds(?). ---
**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:** [September 11, 2020, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/45 "2020-09-11T13:46:19Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > Some interesting names are on there: Mel Gibson, Dick Van Dyke(?), James Brolin, Clint Eastwood(?), Burt Reynolds(?). Really? I’m surprised Jim Carrie didn’t make the list. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2020, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/46 "2020-09-11T15:12:05Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > I read somewhere that Fleming had Hoagy Carmichael in mind. Not to play him, but as a model of what he should look like. Correct. See the fifth paragraph here, and the sketch at the top of the article, created with Fleming’s approval: [James Bond - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Bond#Creation_and_inspiration) ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2020, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/47 "2020-09-11T15:17:33Z")
I really think that Bond is a creation of the 60s, when it was still possible to enjoy the movies unironically and that Sean Connery was the best Bond. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2020, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/48 "2020-09-11T15:44:36Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > Timothy Dalton was the closest they ever got to Fleming’s Bond, and he only made it through two movies. Great movies, IHMO, but not particularly popular. The first one was good, although (like Rambo III) it suffers in post-9/11 hindsight. The second one was shite - with a villain from a bad Miami Vice episode. But I get it, _Scarface_ was all the rage in the 80s… ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2020, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/49 "2020-09-11T15:46:11Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > I really, really dislike the Daniel Craig version of Bond. It’s not really the same character at all. He’s not that cool, he gets beat up and tortured all the time, he gets everyone around him killed. He’s really dark Yes, but so did the Bond of the books. That whole “having your testicles beaten” thing was straight out of the original _Casino Royale_ story. I think Craig’s brutality is more in line with the books. Personally I liked Brosnan best as Bond stylistically even though his films were dire - in fact, my favorite Bond, favorite "Bond girl " (Michelle Yeoh) and favorite theme song were all from _Tomorrow Never DIes_, a film which was otherwise awful and stupid. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2020, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/50 "2020-09-11T16:00:27Z")
I never read the books, so I got my Bond impressions from the earlier movies. ---
**Author:** ![icon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c6cbf5/32.png) [@icon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/icon)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2020, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/51 "2020-09-15T16:22:29Z")
> [@cormac262](#): > > Connery. Without any doubt. And here’s the best way to look at it: without Connery’s Bond there NEVER would have been Moore, Dalton, Brosnan, or Craig. Think about it. Connery set the “standard” and the lead for all the others to follow. If ANY of these others would have started the franchise, it never would have had the longevity that it did/does. > People went to all the post-Connery Bond movies just to see, and be reminded of the Connery Bond (although it took quite a bit of imagination for a lot). I can remember seeing the first Moore movies and thinking WWCD ? I don’t think it is quite correct to say that all the bond movies are because of Sean Connery, they really are more because of decisions on tone that happened in Goldfinger where they had things like James Bond going from wearing a wet-suit to a Tuxedo underneath. Before that, the Bond films were enjoyable but did not quite have the “bond” feel that they have had from then on. I think for that reason you have almost two versions of bond to pick from during his run while for the rest they either meet your image or they don’t. That being said, it is really hard to pick among them because I feel they all basically fit in the movies they were given and therefore depend on which of the bond films you enjoy the most. That is why, for example, I don’t much like Dalton, if I re-watch License To Kill or Graig in Quantum of Solace, though both fill their roles in the other films of the series they play admirably. ``` //i\\ ``` ---
**Author:** ![spifflog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@spifflog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spifflog)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2020, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/52 "2020-09-17T11:57:32Z")
> [@icon](#): > > I don’t think it is quite correct to say that all the bond movies are because of Sean Connery, they really are more because of decisions on tone that happened in Goldfinger where they had things like James Bond going from wearing a wet-suit to a Tuxedo underneath. Before that, the Bond films were enjoyable but did not quite have the “bond” feel that they have had from then on. I think for that reason you have almost two versions of bond to pick from during his run while for the rest they either meet your image or they don’t. I generally agree with most of this. As much as I dislike Moore as Bond, I’ve come to realize that I it’s more accurate to say that I don’t like the Moore _era_ Bond films. Somewhere in mid-1970s, _The Spy Who Loved Me_ plus or minus, the films started to get silly. I don’t know if they just wanted to change the tone, or wanted in ensure that this wasn’t “your father’s Bond” or some such thoughts. So perhaps Moore would have been great in Dr. No., but it’s hard to tell. And then with Dalton it got “harder” again, as it did with Craig. That’s more my taste. So I think the Bonds are more a function of the producer’s tone, and a sign of the times, than the actor. ---
**Author:** ![fedman1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e495f1/32.png) [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2020, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/53 "2020-09-17T22:05:08Z")
actually, in Casino Royale, Bond described perfect martini as having both gin and vodka ---
**Author:** ![fedman1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e495f1/32.png) [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2020, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/54 "2020-09-17T22:07:57Z")
didn’t I read that when they started making movies, Fleming wanted David Niven as Bond? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2020, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/55 "2020-09-18T14:20:25Z")
Apparently so: [James Bond - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Bond#Non-Eon_films) ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2020, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/56 "2020-09-18T16:02:37Z")
Niven was Bond on the first Casino Royale. He was too old to be a Bond in a regular 007 film. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2020, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/57 "2020-09-18T18:49:22Z")
I agree. I also think that at some point during Connery’s run, the film Bond kind of became its own thing, and has gone on its own trajectory ever since. That’s why we had the wisecracking Moore Bond in the 70s, and then a darker, meaner Dalton Bond when the pendulum swung the other direction. Brosnan’s Bond was back in more or less the mold of Connery’s Bond, but updated for the late 20th century. And Craig’s Bond is more similar to Dalton’s Bond than anything else, in fitting with the early 21st century interest in gritty and dark anti-heroes. Meanwhile literary Bond as written by Fleming was sort of a blend of Connery’s Bond and Craig’s Bond, but AFAIK, without the sort of tightly handled craziness that seems to inhabit Craig’s Bond and Dalton’s Bond, and without the silliness of Connery’s Bond. ---
**Author:** ![fedman1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e495f1/32.png) [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2020, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/58 "2020-09-20T07:39:39Z")
in book Casino Royale, Bond describes martini with both gin aand vodka ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2020, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/59 "2020-10-15T01:59:52Z")
I genuinely like them all, with Dalton the lowest. He was just a little too evil for me, in movies that were still mostly comedic. Brosnan looked the most like Bond, in my mind. Could he do all the stuff he claimed he could? Probably. The movies were mostly not that bad, but that that great, either. Moore is my favourite Bond. That’s different to me thinking who the best Bond was. Roger Moore started playing Bond before I was born, and I’m not sure I ever saw any of his movies in the cinema. However, this was in the days when it was a big deal for a movie to be shown on terrestrial (non-cable/network?) TV in the UK. It was always a huge deal when they could show a Bond movie, usually around Christmas and on ITV. And they were such good fun. Big silly fights and stunts, sexual behaviour that was so over-the-top it was almost tame. And some of his opponents were fantastic - Grace Jones, Jaws and Scaramanga are weirdly fascinating. There’s a sentimental fondness for me there that I sometimes get with the other movies, pre-Craig. Daniel Craig is a great action hero spy, but, to me, not terribly Bond. His movies have been too strongly influenced by other action movies, rather than carving out their own niche. George Lazenby was a reasonably good Bond. The movie was a far better movie than all the others. It might partly be because it was his only Bond movie, but I think that’s cheating Lazenby, Diana Rigg, and the other actors, especially Rigg’s father. The final scene, going from slightly-uncomfortable schmaltziness, the kind of talk people in love only do when there’s no-one else around, to, well. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/hgndOK2zuY0/hqdefault.jpg "On Her Majesty's Secret Service Ending") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgndOK2zuY0) Daniel Craig has had a couple of scenes that come close, especially the scene where Eva Green says he can have her “anywhere,” but touching, heartfelt tragedy, acted so well that it makes you tear up, is not what I watch Bond movies for. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2020, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/60 "2020-10-15T05:00:25Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > Niven was Bond on the first Casino Royale. Niven was Bond in the second Casino Royale. Barry Nelson was Bond in the first. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259.md?page=4)