Right now, somewhere on a soundstage at Pinewood Studios, several young British actors are lining up to have their dreams crushed.
Rumor has it that Amazon execs and director Denis Villeneuve are finally holding screen tests to determine who will succeed Daniel Craig as the seventh James Bond. Not even M knows the full list of potential 007s, but Jack Lowden, Callum Turner and Josh O’Connor are widely presumed to be among the top contenders. One of these hopefuls, and only one, will end up inheriting the most coveted male lead in cinematic history. The rest will experience the emotional equivalent of being ejected from an Aston Martin passenger seat.
Luckily for the losers, there is one consolation: They aren’t alone. Pinewood is littered with the dashed hopes of would-be Bonds going back decades — many of whom went on to become household names for other reasons. And, even more luckily for the rest of us, some of the footage from their 007 screen tests has survived intact and leaked onto the internet.
James Brolin — 1982
With Roger Moore making noises about retiring after For Your Eyes Only, Bond’s producers did something unthinkable: They seriously considered casting an American. James Brolin, then 42 and best known for The Amityville Horror, tested over several days, even adopting something almost resembling an English accent. His Octopussy audition included the seduction scene from From Russia With Love — a sequence Bond producers had long used to test would-be 007s — as well as a specially staged fight to test Brolin’s physical chops. He nearly got the part, until Moore agreed to return.
Sam Neill — 1986
When Moore finally did retire after A View to a Kill, the producers went looking for a new 007 for The Living Daylights. Among the contenders was the 38-year-old New Zealander then best known for the miniseries Reilly, Ace of Spies and Omen III — and still seven years away from Jurassic Park. Neill performed the same From Russia With Love seduction scene Brolin had tackled four years earlier. Director John Glen reportedly favored him, but producer Cubby Broccoli wasn’t convinced. The role ultimately went to Timothy Dalton.
Henry Cavill — 2005
Seven years before he put on Superman’s cape, a 22-year-old Cavill came remarkably close to slipping into Bond’s tuxedo for Casino Royale. Director Martin Campbell later said the young Brit gave a “tremendous” audition but was simply too young for the role. For his test, Cavill traded the old From Russia With Love bit for a more recent Bond encounter: Pierce Brosnan’s double-entendre-packed first meeting with Xenia Onatopp at the casino in GoldenEye. The role, of course, went to Daniel Craig.
Antony Starr — 2005
The New Zealand actor was 29 and virtually unknown to American audiences when he joined the Casino Royale Bond hunt. Starr performed the same GoldenEye scene as Cavill, but in his native Kiwi accent — an unusual sound coming out of 007’s mouth. He eventually found international fame playing the considerably less suave Homelander on The Boys.
Rupert Friend — 2005
Friend had exactly one movie on his résumé — The Libertine, opposite Johnny Depp — when the 23-year-old Brit found himself auditioning to become Bond. His test used the same GoldenEye bit as Cavill and Starr — but he obviously didn’t get the part, either. Still, Friend soon landed Pride & Prejudice and eventually got to play a CIA operative on Homeland.
Sam Worthington — 2005
Before Pandora came calling, the 29-year-old Australian actor came surprisingly close to winning the Casino Royale sweepstakes. Worthington was flown to London, fitted for a tux and screen-tested with the usual GoldenEye material. Worthington later admitted he could handle Bond’s physicality but struggled with the suave stuff — especially the accent. Four years later, Avatar turned him into an international star.