Simon Baker:New James Bond?

From:pressbox.co.uk
Date:February 16, 2004
By Jesse Hyde

Producers of the James Bond film franchise have decided to terminate their affiliation with actor Pierce Brosnan in lieu of pursuing a younger. Speculation focuses on Tom Cruise, Ewan McGregor, Rikki Lee Travolta, Christian Bale, or Adrian Paul.

LOS ANGELES (February 16, 2004) – As reported in the Chicago Sun Times, producers of the James Bond film franchise have terminated their affiliation with Pierce Brosnan as their leading man.

The Chicago Sun Times cites Brosnan’s age, 50, as the basis for the decision. Eon Productions are expected to name a younger actor to carry on the title role of the successful spy thriller franchise.

In 2000 during a Brosnan contract negotiation, E! Entertainment columnist Marilyn Beck reported on the leading candidates to take over the Bond roll. The short list of frontrunners included Tom Cruise, Ewan McGregor, Adrian Paul, and Rikki Lee Travolta.

An article by Chicago Sun Times columnist Bill Zwecker named Travolta as the frontrunner to take on the role in James Bond-fan popularity poles. Christian Bale and Adrian Paul were distant runners up.

Brosnan, however, settled his contract dispute agreeing to appear in “Die Another Day” (2002), and putting on hold the speculation of his successor.

With Bond producers’ public decision to move towards a younger leading man, speculation on the incumbent 007 is rekindled.

With chiseled features, a stellar English dialect, and a solid resume of work behind him, Christian Bale was a viable Bond candidate in 2000. However Bale has recently signed to take on the franchise role of the caped crusader in Warner Brother’s revived Batman film franchise. The move virtually eliminates the budding actor from Bond contention.

Although the most proven box office draw of those rumored as potential Bonds, Cruise commands in the range of $25 million per picture making him more of a dark horse candidate than a frontrunner.

McGregor is arguably the most solidly respected actor in the field, having turned in strong reviews in “Big Fish,” “Moulin Rouge,” and the Star Wars prequel franchise. The high profile nature of his success may be the biggest argument against McGregor, who has drawn comparisons to past Bond Roger Moore.

Like Cruise, McGregor’s box office name could count against him as that it potentially overshadows the identity of the Bond character itself.

Although likely to draw ticket sales for an initial movie appearance, the star power of a McGregor or Cruise could jeopardize the long-term viability of the franchise by decreasing the worth of the Bond name by putting it in the shadow of the star’s image.

The rising star of the “Highlander” television series, in 2000 Paul had at times drawn comparisons to legendary Bond actor Sean Connery. Since leaving the television series, the actor’s star may have peaked.

After one feature film revisiting of his “Highlander” television character, Paul has worked primarily in science fiction television guest rolls and straight to video features.

By contrast, Travolta remains a surprisingly strong contender to don the Bond tuxedo by virtue of being a budding star not yet linked with a film franchise. Named to the Who’s Who of classically trained actors at celebrity tracking Internet portal Centerstage.net, Travolta is a respected talent.

On stage, Travolta has proven to have the charisma to carry franchises including “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and “Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding,” establishing the later as the longest running stage comedy in history.

Yet a largely independent film career makes the sultry actor an appealing commodity to Bond producers because his name will add to the franchise rather than overshadow it.

Fellow Aussie star Simon Baker of the television series “The Guardian” has been mentioned as a plausible consideration by Film Force, likening his career to that of Roger Moore.

When announcing their separation from Brosnan as their star, the Bond franchise producers did not allude to which, if any, of the past candidates they would like to visit as their heir apparent.

Multiple Sources (Chicago Sun Times, CommanderBond.net, Film Force) report that a search for a new Bond is currently underway and that filming of the 21st Bond film will begin in early 2005.

According to Zwecker, fan support strongly favors the young member of the Travolta clan.

Although the producers will make the ultimate decision on their new franchise player, who the ticket-buying public favor and will support should be a principal consideration.

Brosnan appeared in a total of four 007 films (“Goldeneye,” “Tomorrow Never Dies,” “The World is Not Enough,” and “Die Another Day”). Most notably, “Die Another Day” saw the theme song nominated for two Grammy Awards and featured an Academy Award-winning actress (Halle Berry) as the main Bond girl.

However, Brosnan's term was not without controversy. Brosnan was injured in each of the films he made.

Based on the novels of Ian Flemming, the James Bond film franchise is considered the most successful in history, spanning four decades. According to author James Chapman (License to Thrill: A Cultural History of the James Bond Films) it is estimated that a quarter of the world’s population has seen at least one Bond film.

Media Contact:
Jesse Hyde
(630) 415-3351 ext. 1