One of the most talked about roles both in history and right now, is who will take up the role as the next James Bond. But with a switchup in ownership of the rights and the rumour mill overflowing, it could be anyone.
The most recent actor pegged to play the ultimate spy is Theo James. He’s taken over at the bookies as the favourite due to his performance in Guy Ritchie’s Netflix series The Gentleman and his ability to perform his own stunts. But what about the actors who have played Bond themselves? Which film of the franchise is their favourite? Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig are the six actors who have donned the screen as Bond and inyterestingly, three of the stars have opted for the same movie.
Connery, Dalton, and Craig have all separately stated that From Russia With Love (1963) is their favourite of the franchise.
With Connery opting for one of his own movies as his top choice, he told the Golden Globes: “On the Bond front, it would be From Russia With Love, because that story worked.”
Dalton agreed with this statement when asked at the 40th anniversary celebration.
However, Craig named three of the films as his favourites throughout the years.
He told CHUD that “Dr No and From Russia with Love” made the cut for him.
He added: “They’re great, just the best; they’re two of my favourite movies. Sean Connery being physical, scary, complicated, bad, all those things about the character.”
But years on from this, Craig changed his mind and opted for 1964’s Goldfinger, a popular choice among fans and currently holding the top spot of best Bond movies on Rotten Tomatoes.
In an interview with GQ, he said: “Goldfinger, I think, is my favourite James Bond movie. I love Dr No, but it was sort of where Sean Connery became the James Bond that we know and love.”
Opting for something off the beaten track, Moore selected the film that came just before his sting as Bond, stating that Diamonds Are Forever was his favourite Bond picture, due to its goofy nature and abundance of one-liners.
Brosnan echoed Craig’s more recent choice of Goldfinger and recalled that it was the film that he watched as a ten-year-old boy growing up in rural Ireland.
It clearly made an impression as he remembered it being “the most incredible thing I’ve ever seen”.
Brosnan said: “James Bond has been part of my cinematic heritage, as it were, as an actor.”
Lazenby may have only starred as Bond once, but he left his mark with On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, which has grown in popularity since it’s release.
Christopher Nolan has said that Lazenby’s foray as Bond was his favourite of the franchise and it ranks in Rotten Tomatoes’ top 10 Bond films.