The One Way Pierce Brosnan Would Return To The James Bond Franchise
One former Bond might come back to the series, but under one big condition.
During a live GoldenEye watch-along party hosted by Esquire, Pierce Brosnan explained what could bring him back to the Bond franchise, although it would be quite a change for the venerable actor.
Brosnan, who played 007 for seven years — beginning with GoldenEye in 1995 and finishing his tenure with Die Another Day in 2002 — joined Esquire's party from his home in Hawaii, answering plenty of Bond-related questions, including what it would take for him to return to the franchise.
When asked if he would come back to the Bond films, Brosnan said he would come back in a very different role: "Would [I] return as a villain? If asked, yes! I believe so."
Though it would cause some cognitive dissonance among fans who loved Brosnan as Bond, it would be fun to see the actor come back to the series, and it would be even more fun to watch him chew the scenery as a Bond villain. However, that wasn't all that Brosnan had to say about James Bond; he provided tons of fun tidbits, facts, and anecdotes from his time as the superspy, including the fact that Quentin Tarantino approached him about directing a Bond film, his advice for Daniel Craig, and how he really feels about his time as 007.
Brosnan had lots of Bond bon mots to share
Even though he would only come back to the Bond franchise as a bad guy, Brosnan revealed that the character has stayed with him: "I suppose it's the walk, the presence, and how one carries oneself. He's a hard character to get away from. Not that I wanted to get away from him, because I am the man I am, and you use so much of one's own persona in playing a character like this. There's definitely a melding of the two people, the two personas. I'm just not very good with gadgets."
Maybe that's the reason that Brosnan is the one who encouraged Daniel Craig to take the role in his stead (Craig picked up the Bond mantle from Brosnan with 2006's Casino Royale). "We did pass in the night Daniel and I, when my day was done," Brosnan said. "I knew Daniel had been offered the part and he was very apprehensive about it. I remember seeing him one night with a great group of friends and he was really wrestling with it and I just said, 'Go do it, you can do it, you'll be brilliant, you'll kick yourself if you don't. Snap out of it and go be Bond,' and boy did he ever." Of course, with Craig on the precipice of his final Bond film — No Time to Die, which has seen its release delayed — Brosnan also has some advice for the British actor, saying Craig should "enjoy [his] life" and genuinely praising his fellow Bond's performance.
No Time to Die might be delayed, but in the meantime, fans have plenty of time to rewatch all 24 James Bond films to date, revisiting Bonds from Sean Connery to Timothy Dalton to Brosnan to Craig (or even Roger Moore, if you're into that kind of thing).