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| Pierce Brosnan's Bond contract ran out in
2002 | Now that Pierce Brosnan has
bolted from the James Bond
franchise one flick sooner
than expected, filmdom's most famous name is without a face. Of course,
the most bankable Bond nearly bailed once before, only to return for the
last 007 flick, "Die Another Day" - which became the franchise's biggest
moneymaker. So he may yet live twice.
Or he may never say never again. Word is that EON, the production
company behind Bond, wants to compete for the youthful "Spider-Man"
demographic as well as push Matt Damon's Jason Bourne off its
turf, which means
shying away from the
traditional image of Bond as a suave older man to one of, for lack of a
better term, spy candy.
So what's the requirement for updating yet still embodying Ian
Fleming's sophisticated secret agent? For starters, he's got to wear a tux
well, no matter how badly EON wants to dumb him down and tart him up. He's got to be convincingly
wired - just ask Q, technology
has moved beyond the old hidden-ejection-seat-in-the-Aston-Martin trick. And finally,
indubitably, he's got to be
able to charm the pants off the ladies, literally.
Naturally, there's a stable of young (and some not-so-young) actors
who've been clamoring to replace Brosnan. Here's a look at those
mentioned, and their readiness for the job.
Eric Bana |
Heath Leder |
Jude Law |
Ewan McGregor |
Clive Owen |
Hugh Jackman | Eric Bana
Last
Seen: "Troy"
Verdict: License to Kill
Heath Ledger
Last Seen: "The Order"
Verdict: Do you expect me to
talk?
Orlando Bloom
Last Seen: "Troy"
Verdict: Dr. No
Jude Law
Last Seen: "Cold Mountain"
Verdict: Never Say Never
Again
Hugh Grant
Last Seen: "Love Actually"
Verdict: Octopussy
Gerard Butler
Last Seen: "Timeline"
Verdict: You Don't Live
Twice
Ewan McGregor
Last Seen: "Big Fish"
Verdict:
Thunderballs
Ioan Gruffudd
Last Seen: "King Arthur"
Verdict: Try Another Day
Colin Firth
Last Seen: "Love Actually"
Verdict: On Her Majesty's
Secret Service
Clive Owen
Last Seen: "King Arthur"
Verdict:
Shaken, not stirred.
Hugh Jackman
Last Seen: "Van Helsing"
Verdict: The name's Bond,
James Bond.
(Agencies)
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Updated: 2004-08-05 16:36