In 1985 Sir Roger Moore played James Bond for the final time in the film A View to a Kill. After that, the hunt was on once again for the next actor to portray Bond, James Bond. Eventually, British star Timothy Dalton took on the role, but before he signed the contract, the Bond bosses were keen to get a future Steven Spielberg star on the film.
In the mid-1980s New Zealand actor Sam Neill was approached to play 007.
The star would, of course, go on to find worldwide fame in Spielberg’s dinosaur epic Jurassic Park in 1993.
In the movie, Neill played Dr Alan Grant, the protagonist of the series who would return in Jurassic Park III and Jurassic World: Dominion.
But Neill went to a James Bond audition with much trepidation at the time, he has now revealed.
Neill recently explained: “I did [the audition] with extreme reluctance. I think that was the last thing I allowed my then agent to bully me into.”
Neill added that he told his agent: “Listen, I do not want to be James Bond.” But, in particular, he did not want to become an actor that everyone hated when compared to former versions of the spy hero.
He continued: “I particularly don’t want to be that James Bond that everybody says: ‘Look, there’s James Bond in the corner of the restaurant. He’s the one I don’t like.'”
Still, he had been signed up for the audition and had to give it a go.
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In 1987, Dalton starred in The Living Daylights, the first of his two James Bond films.
The actor was destined to play the international spy, considering he was screen-tested for the role back in 1969 for the Bond movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
He was due to replace Sean Connery in the ’60s when the star finally decided to separate himself from the James Bond series after five films as the hero.
But, ultimately, Dalton turned down the part.
Bond boss Albert R Broccoli ended up hiring Australian actor George Lazenby as the hero instead.
Dalton was also offered the role of 007 in 1983 for Octopussy, as well as in 1985 for A View to a Kill.
But both times, he was forced to decline due to previous commitments.
Neill never portrayed the spy hero on the big screen.
The James Bond films are available on Amazon Prime Video now.
