The upcoming 30th anniversary of Pierce Brosnan’s GoldenEye makes me want him to return for an Old Man 007 movie more than ever. Since the inception of the James Bond movie franchise with Dr No, the Broccoli family has been shepherding the saga. The Broccolis wanted to make each movie a true cinematic event, which meant carefully developing each entry and not watering down the brand with various spinoffs. I was stunned as anyone to hear that the family had sold the creative rights to Bond to Amazon, freeing the way for more movies and TV shows.
I’m nervous about this change, as the Broccolis were an essential part of shaping the series. Even so, I’m curious as to what the future will look like without them and what the next creative direction will be. The Amazon deal opens up the James Bond series like never before; in addition to theatrical mainline entries, there can be spinoffs revolving around the 00 program or characters like M or Moneypenny. There could be TV miniseries that offer faithful adaptations of Ian Fleming’s original Bond books too. What I really want, though, is a new Pierce Brosnan Bond movie.
The 30th Anniversary Of GoldenEye Makes Me Want An Older 007 Movie With Pierce Brosnan
Brosnan’s James Bond debut saved the series
The first James Bond movie I saw in a cinema was GoldenEye, which marked the franchise’s return after a six-year absence. To my generation, he’s the Bond we grew up with. Sadly, Brosnan was never that well-served by the material. He grew more comfortable with the role with each pᴀssing sequel, but the films themselves got gradually worse. GoldenEye is easily the best of Brosnan’s era, featuring a great blend of spy jinks, action and comedy.
Brosnan is arguably the H๏τtest actor to pick up the Bond mantle too, and the role fit him like a glove. GoldenEye had a hard job in 1995; critics and cultural commentators felt the property was hopelessly dated and audiences were no longer interested. The belated sequel not only managed to merge the elements audiences loved (exotic locations, wild gadgets, creative setpieces, etc) it also offered a darker story with a more introspective 007.
Part of GoldenEye’s cultural legacy is also tied up with its excellent N64 video game adaptation.
It’s not a flawless adventure by any means (Sean Bean’s 006 faking his death in such an elaborate fashion in GoldenEye’s opening is a plot point that always confused me), but it’s a key example of what makes the James Bond series special. Unfortunately, Brosnan’s run got worse and worse and never lived up to his debut. Brosnan was shoved out of the franchise following 2002’s woeful Die Another Day, but he deserved a better finale – which an older 007 movie could give him.
Pierce Brosnan Is The Best Candidate For An Older Bond
It certainly won’t be Daniel Craig
Despite running for over 60 years, only six actors have played Bond on the big screen. An old man James Bond movie would only work if it were fronted by an actor who has played the role before, and Brosnan is the only realistic choice. Daniel Craig slammed the door shut on his time with No Time to Die, where his version of 007 was blown up in the finale. Timothy Dalton is still working on the likes of 1923 but hasn’t featured in an action role in many years.
Brosnan is looking dapper and fit as ever… and he could still pull off the action the role required.
I always wanted a third 007 adventure with Dalton, whose run ended prematurely with Licence to Kill; this was the last Bond outing before the six-year hiatus. At least in Dalton’s case, Licence to Kill is a banger and a great film to finish on – even if that wasn’t his intention. That only leaves Brosnan, who is currently as busy as he’s ever been. In recent years, he stole the show in movies like Black Adam and Steven Soderbergh’s Black Bag and has more recently appeared in the Guy Ritchie series MobLand.
Brosnan is looking dapper and fit as ever too, and while I doubt an older James Bond film would be as physically intense as GoldenEye or Tomorrow Never Dies, he could still pull off the action required. If nothing else, it would be fascinating to explore what a character like James Bond would be like in his later years. He doesn’t seem like the type to retire quietly, so he would likely end up getting involved in one last mission to prove his worth.
I Want Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond To Finally Get A Worthy Ending
Die Another Day is 007’s franchise’s nadir
The Broccolis didn’t always have a golden touch with the series. Plenty of duds happened under their watch, including The Man with the Golden Gun and Craig’s Spectre. Even the weaker installments tend to have redeeming features, but I can’t think of a kind word to say about Die Another Day. It’s a puzzlingly dire entry that tried (and failed) to pay homage to the series on the eve of its 40th anniversary. It’s the lowest the series ever sank, but I’d like an epilogue for Pierce Brosnan’s Bond that finally lived up to GoldenEye’s promise.
|
Every Pierce Brosnan James Bond Movie |
Rotten Tomatoes |
|---|---|
|
GoldenEye (1995) |
80% |
|
Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) |
57% |
|
The World is Not Enough (1999) |
51% |
|
Die Another Day (2002) |
56% |
Amazon is no doubt running through the potential projects they can get off the ground – and a Pierce Brosnan return should be high up on that list. It could be a Prime original completely unconnected to the rebooted theatrical series, and it would be a guaranteed streaming smash. I’ll confess a Brosnan James Bond comeback is unlikely, but hey, a man can dream.
Source: Rotten Tomatoes
