Roger Moore decided not to watch any of Timothy Dalton’s James Bond movies – but he had a good reason. Roger Moore’s Bond movies might look dated and campy to modern eyes, but his run is one of the most entertaining of any actor who played the role.

Even the weaker Moore entries tend to feature great gags or impressive action sequences. Moore was the longest-serving 007 star, too, playing the superspy seven times from 1973’s Live and Let Die to 1985’s A View to a Kill. Moore was 58 when his final Bond adventure was released, and decided it was time to step aside for a newcomer.

Infamously, Pierce Brosnan was originally cast in the next film The Living Daylights, having beaten out other actors like Sam Neill. The unexpected renewal of Brosnan’s TV series Remington Steele ruled him out at the last moment, with the role going to Timothy Dalton instead.

Legal issues saw that Dalton only made two James Bond movies: The Living Daylights and 1989’s Licence to Kill. While he may not come on top of anybody’s Best Bond rankings, Dalton brought a welcome grit and dark charisma to the role, with even Christopher Nolan calling Dalton his favorite Bond actor.

Roger Moore Refused To Watch Timothy Dalton’s Bond Films To Avoid Answering Questions On Them

Moore wanted to let Dalton’s 007 speak for himself

In a retrospective on the franchise he penned for The Times in 2008, Moore spoke to the continued need for the James Bond character into the 21st century. Among his many comments was the surprise reveal that Moore purposefully avoided watching Timothy Dalton’s Bond outings to avoid the press hounding him for his thoughts.

Cubby [Broccoli] again decided to reinvent and recast. He brought in Timothy Dalton as a more chaste 007. Timothy is a brilliant actor and I’m told was a very good Bond. I never saw his films – purposely to avoid having to answer “What do you think of Timothy Dalton?”

This was a wise move on Moore’s part, since anything he said could have been twisted into something negative about Dalton’s darker take. When Dalton came into the role, he made no secret of the fact he didn’t like the Moore era’s light comedic version and wanted to introduce some grit.

Even so, Dalton never insulted or dismissed Moore’s James Bond either. Moore still hadn’t seen Dalton’s movies in 2008, but in a later interview with the much-missed James Bond Radio podcast in 2016, Moore revealed he’d finally gotten around to it. His thoughts? “I thought Timothy’s Bond was excellent.”

Timothy Dalton Almost Replaced Roger Moore Much Earlier

For Your Eyes Only intro was written to introduce a new 007

Moore’s original James Bond contract expired after his fourth outing, Moonraker. This means that every subsequent sequel he appeared in was negotiated on a film-by-film basis. While his deal was being worked on, other actors were auditioned for the part, such as the time James Brolin came very close to replacing Moore in 1983’s Octopussy.

Having previously pᴀssed on auditioning for 007 in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Dalton again pᴀssed on For Your Eyes Only when it came his way. Moore’s fifth outing is the most grounded of his entire run, dialing back on the gadgets and spectacle to tell a more traditional spy story.

The opening scene where Bond lays flowers on his wife’s grave was also written to introduce a new 007 actor, as a way to tell viewers he’s still the same character. Dalton in For Your Eyes Only would have worked well had he been cast, but he was scared off by the campier tone of the Moore era.

Roger Moore Praised Pierce Brosnan And Daniel Craig’s 007s

Moore gave all his Bond successors top marks

While Moore avoided Dalton’s run for over two decades, he did get around to watching Pierce Brosnan’s and Daniel Craig’s James Bond movies. Needless to say, he was a fan of both. For Craig, Moore enjoyed Casino Royale so much that he even made a big investment.

Daniel Craig impressed me so greatly in his debut outing, Casino Royale (and I had to buy the DVD myself, so it is praise not heaped lightly!) by introducing a more gritty, unrefined edge to the character that I thought Sean might just have to move over. Craig’s interpretation was like nothing we’d seen on screen before; Jimmy Bond was earning his stripes and making mistakes.

Despite Craig’s films being the tonal opposite of his run, Moore loved that the new movies were darker and leaned closer to the Ian Fleming novels. Moore also appreciated how they made Craig’s spy more human and vulnerable.

In the aforementioned James Bond Radio chat, Moore labels Pierce Brosnan’s Bond as “excellent.” That said, he also quipped, “Hey listen, if I could do it, anybody can do it!“

Timothy Dalton’s James Bond Run Is The Most Underrated Of The Series

Dalton’s grounding of James Bond was 15 years too early

Among the critiques leveled at Timothy Dalton’s 007 run is that he was too serious and humorless, lacking Moore’s light touch and Connery’s mean edge. Even now, Dalton’s duology tends to get overlooked, which is a genuine shame as he’s a fantastic 007.

Part of the issue with Dalton’s succeeding Moore was twofold: one, audiences had waned on Moore’s goofier take, and two, they then felt Dalton’s edgier version was too serious. The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill still had humor, but they leaned into the books and weren’t afraid to get nasty.

Licence to Kill, in particular, is the most violent of the entire James Bond franchise. Dalton tried to make his films more grounded and romantic than Moore’s, with quips being reduced to a minimum. Dalton’s era is very much a precursor to Craig’s, but audiences just weren’t buying it back in the 1980s.

Dalton was offered a chance to return for GoldenEye, with the film being written with him in mind. However, Dalton only wanted to make one more film, while producers tried to sign him up for three beyond GoldenEye. The star then exited James Bond early, and it feels like a missed opportunity that he never got his third outing.

Source: The Times, James Bond Radio