Best Bond? You Tell Me !!!
November 13th, 2008 at 3:59 am by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
The 6 Bonds: Connery, Lazenby, Moore, Dalton, Brosnan, Craig
The 22nd official James Bond movie “Quantum of Solace” hits theaters Friday… so who do you think is the best Bond?
Which actor has officially played Bond in the most movies?
Careful, this is a bit of a trick question…
The answer is: Roger Moore, who played 007 in 7 official movies… Sean Connery played Bond in 6 official movies and 1 unofficial movie (see below).
Sean Connery played James Bond 7* times from 1962-1983 (including 5 in a row before leaving the franchise after “You Only Live Twice” and returning for “Diamonds Are Forever”):
“Dr. No” (1962)
“From Russia with Love” (1963)
“Goldfinger” (1964)
“Thunderball” (1965)
“You Only Live Twice” (1967)
“Diamonds Are Forever” (1971)
* “Never Say Never Again” (1983) does not count on the “official” James Bond film listing, as it was released by Warner Brothers rather than United Artists and Produced by Kevin McClory (not Cubby Broccoli and EON). It was released 4 months after the “official” Bond movie of 1983: “Octopussy”.
George Lazenby played James Bond 1 time when Connery stepped away after 1967:
“On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (1969)
Roger Moore is the longest serving James Bond, in the role 7 times (consecutively) from (1973-1985):
“Live and Let Die” (1973)
“The Man with the Golden Gun” (1974)
“The Spy Who Loved Me” (1977)
“Moonraker” (1979)
“For Your Eyes Only” (1981)
“Octopussy” (1983)
“A View to a Kill” (1985)
Timothy Dalton played James Bond twice from (1987-1989):
“The Living Daylights” (1987)
“Licence to Kill” (1989)
Pierce Brosnan played James Bond 4 times from (1995-2002):
“GoldenEye” (1995)
“Tomorrow Never Dies” (1997)
“The World Is Not Enough” (1999)
“Die Another Day” (2002)
Daniel Craig is the current Bond, in 2nd movie (2006-present):
“Casino Royale” (2006)
“Quantum of Solace” (2008)
From 1967-1973 there were 4 Bond movies and 3 different actors… Connery in ”You Only Live Twice” (1967), Lazenby in “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (1969), Connery in “Diamonds Are Forever” (1971), and Moore in “Live and Let Die” (1973).
Adding to the confusion, Connery left the series a second time after 1971’s “Diamonds Are Forever”, then returned for the un-official ”Never Say Never Again” in 1983, which was released in October, just 4 months after the June release of the official Bond movie “Octopussy”.
SO HERE’S MY VOTE, AND I KNOW YOU WON’T LIKE IT:
Daniel Craig was great in “Casino Royale”… he’s been great in just about every movie he’s starred in… but Pierce Brosnan is my favorite and here are my reasons why:
Timothy Dalton’s 2 turns as Bond nearly ruined the franchise, in fact, after “Licence to Kill” (1989), six years went by before 1985’s “GoldenEye”. Before that they were cranking out a Bond movie every 1, 2, or 3 years.
Brosnan came in and rejuvinated the franchise with great acting, seriousness, intelligence, and charm, and he did some of his own stunts… he brought stability to a role that had lost its stability from the years of Roger Moore.
While Moore brought stability, his Bond was more comical, and while it fit the times of the 70’s and early 80s, I’ve always enjoyed the more serious Bond portrayals.
Moore can also be credited for going up against one of the best henchmen in the series: “Jaws” (”The Spy Who Loved Me”)… while Connery faced the other: “Oddjob” (”Goldfinger”).
Connery may have been the first and for many the best, but he also created instability in the franchise that made him a worldwide star. And all but one of his movies were released before I was born.
So my choice is Pierce Brosnan, with Connery as my 2nd favorite and Craig as my 3rd favorite.
Tags: Brosnan, Connery, Craig, Dalton, Daniel Craig, George Lazenby, James Bond, Jaws, Laff at the Movies, Lazenby, Moore, Oddjob, Pierce Brosnan, Roger Moore, Sean Connery, Timothy Dalton
Aaron Lafferty covers the film industry. Favorite movies include Star Wars, Indiana Jones, The Matrix, Clear and Present Danger, Tombstone, Rounders, Enemy of the State, Rear W...
Connery is the de facto Bond standard in my book, but I grew up in the time of Pierce Brosnan. I kind of give PB credit for reinvigorizing(is that a word?) the franchise. I also love Craig and really enjoyed Casino Royale. I’ll be going to see Quantum tomorrow.
Roger Moore played Bond the most times.
Roger Moore IS Bond, James Bond to me, but Pierce did fine job, although very stiff, and Daniel Craig brings the action back.
I am split between Brosnan and Connery. Connery is a classic, Brosnan brought the franchise back to life and to a new generation. As for Craig, I like him as Bond, but can’t stand the shift the scripts have taken. From “Love ‘em and leave ‘em” tough and cool James Bond to this new vulnerable Bond. Bring bacck the bad-arse.
Sean Connery.
Bye the way, no “Bond, James Bond” Or “Shaken, not stirred.” Again, the new guys have no sense of history. I like the added action, but some things should remain the same.
My first pick is
Daniel Craig 2nd is Sean Connery Casino Royale was great
Sean Connery is the best. He made us love “007-J Bond”. If those first movies in the early 1960’s had flopped, we may never seen the others happen.
I enjoyed Timothy Dalton. I think he brought the coolness and good looks back to Bond. A more believable bond after Moore was getting too old for the part. I like Connery and Moore, but I think Dalton was more like Fleming was thinking of him. I was surprised when they did not get Brosnan out of his television contract when they chose Dalton in the 80s, but was happy with Dalton and I liked him in other things he had done. It did seem Brosnan was destined to have the part some day. I am surprised he is not still playing Bond.
Bronson is my fav all the way!
Pierce for me.
Sean is James Bond. If you look up “Bond, James Bond” in a good dictionary, his picture will be next to the text. Top shelf. Sorry wannabes, he’s the benchmark by which others are measured, and I think that if asked,the people that portrayed 007 after Connery did would ask “I tried to portray who?”
Sean Connery is James Bond, period. If he had not come out as the origional James Bond, the series wouldnt be what it is today at all, he is what made everyone fall in love with the series and that debonair spy in the first place. Everyone after that was just a missed the mark attempt to fill iconic shoes.
That being said, I saw Quantum of Solace last night and it was a great ride. Tons of action and an interesting story line for a Bond film…I liked it. Daniel Craig has done a great job with reinventing Bond as he has changed him with the times in order to grab today’d audience attention. He is a fantastic actor and great to look at but as far as a final vote on the true Bond, Sean is the man forever and ever.
Best Bond? Why that has to Samantha Bond who played Miss Moneypenny during the Brosnan years. What a babe.