The Antipodean

Just saw this on Entertainment Weekly's web site, and it's a pretty reputable source for these things. I thought for sure he'd come back for one more. Shoot!

Bond No More
EW Exclusive: Pierce Brosnan says he's quitting Bond. After four 007 movies, the actor says he's done with the franchise -- opening the door for possible replacements including Hugh Jackman and Clive Owen by Joshua Rich

Pierce Brosnan appears to be turning in his license to kill. ''That's it,'' says the actor otherwise known as Bond, James Bond. ''I've said all I've got to say on the world of James Bond.''

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the 51-year-old Irish-born star answers the question that's plagued millions of 007 fans since his last mission on her majesty's secret service, 2002's ''Die Another Day'': Will he return for his fifth James Bond movie or not? ''Bond is another lifetime,'' he says, ''behind me.''

Unless Brosnan's statement is a negotiating ploy -- Sean Connery, for example, quit for a whole movie before being lured back for bigger bucks -- England-based Eon productions, which produces the Bond flicks, must find another star to carry 007's Walther PPK in the as-yet-untitled 21st Bond movie, which is already scheduled to be released on Nov. 18, 2005. Speculation surrounds Brits Clive Owen, Ioan Gruffudd, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant, Gerard Butler, Jude Law, and Ewan McGregor, as well as Aussies Hugh Jackman, Heath Ledger, and Eric Bana.

For Brosnan, playing James Bond will always be a fond memory. ''We went out on a high,'' he says, ''and I look back affectionately at that time and doing those four movies. But I've said all I gotta say on it.''

adamblast

Clive! Clive! Clive!

neiname

I hope Halle comes back, they don't even need a Bond

ClarkKentKY

Well, why stick with a popular proven movie series when you can make movies like "Laws of Attraction"

Give it to Ewan.

typecase

Darn. I liked Pierce.

angryyoungman

It won't matter who's Bond if they keep up with such awful writing, since the series will die a slow, horrible death. This is what happens when you run out of quality source material.

That being said, I also hope Clive Owen is the next Bond.

ClarkKentKY

I changed my mind. Go with Clive.

OldBoy

That sucks. He really made a great Bond and I fear no matter who they get it will be another Dalton experience!!

Cardiac161

I can understand Pierce Brosnan's frustration...not that I know him.

But it is evident that the plots and everything else for all recent Bond movies are the same...

- bad guy wants to rule the world with some advanced gadget
that's circling the earth
- bad guy had a history with Bond (or MI:6) and wants to get
even
- pretty girls (mostly two of them) are either "scientits", secret
agents or working for the other side
- Bond has a new car that has technology taken from the aliens
in Independence Day
- Bond has acquired great physical skills that qualifies him to be
the best athlete in the world whether it be surfing, fencing,
skiing, snowboarding etc.

Doughboy

That's only because when EON dares to do something different, like Licence to Kill, audiences hate it. Believe me, I love the more serious, low key Bond adventures, but they're only giving people what they want. For all the bitching about how crappy Die Another Day was(and I agree it sucked), people still flocked to see it and it sold a lot of DVDs.

NoxHaveN

aye.

Count me in with the others that felt Brosnan was one of the better James Bonds.

Whoever they get to play Bond better have the look down, as I feel that goes a loooooooong way in convincing the audience to suspend disbelief and immerse themselves in the world of ultra-smooth spy pimpage.

THORN

while IMHO brosnan was the best bond, followed closely by connery (little before my time), i look forward to seeing Clive Owen as bond or possibly Ewan Mcgreggor (if they should want to 'reinvent' the character as a younger man, as they did with Clancy's jack ryan.

i cringe at the thought of hugh jackman, he is a good actor but doesnt fit as bond. wrong accent, wrong look, wrong attitude.

T

El-Kabong

Recent? Where have you been for the last 20 movies? He has always had bad guys with super weapons orbiting the earth (Diamonds Are Forever), mad surfing and fencing skilz (or skiing, scuba diving and parachuting skilz), pretty girls working for the other side (Pussie Galore), cars with way out-there technology (spy who loved me) and enemy agents with 00 history (want a list?)

The formula works, so why rock the boat?

Pity about the new Bond tho - Pierce was a great 007. Of course I'm gonna wait until something more official comes down the pike.

Kal-El

That sucks. I would've liked to see him do one more and not go out on that sour Die Another Day note with Halle's Berries.

Get Me Coffee

Just wish Brosnan would have done one last Bond movie!! Damn it!! He'll be missed, like it or not he was one of the most loved Bonds! The fans NEVER bashed him! The stories- Yes.....but not him.

Sessa17

Totally agree.

Anyone saying otherwise just doesn't know Bond. Clive is perfect.

Jackskeleton

Pierce will never live down that Bond role. He is tainted for life.

Rivero

Good riddance, I say. Brosnan was a passable but unmemorable Bond. He seemed more like a chauffer or game show host than a deadly spy with a license to kill. Bring on Jude, Clive or Ewan.

harosa

I somehow cant imagine Clive Owen surfing a huge wave on a piece of broken metal like in the last horrible Bond.

Playitagainsam

I think it's time to retire Bond and maybe spawn other heroes that will fill his shoes...

Let's face it, the last three films were subpar.

Besides which, the world is different now than during the '60s... Bond was a product of the Cold War, and lived in a West fighting the East. Or fought world-domination schemes that were taking advantage of the Cold War...

These days, differences have blurred, technology is different, and things like cellphones, GSM and Internet are ubiquitous... Better to quit while still on top, rather than fade away pitifully.

Lara Means

Clive Owen as James Bond? You guys are nuts.

tronmaster

Darn, I wish he would do one more serious Bond, the last one was like Moonraker, he now needs to do a For Your Eyes Only. Of course Im sure some of you Bond pundits would say Moore's Bond sucked anyway.

But I hated Die Another Day, to much over the top action and to me the most memorable action sequence was the sword fight!

Derrich

Say what you will, but I liked the Timothy Dalton Bond pics. They didn't have goofy evil geniuses trying to blow up the planet. Mostly they were hard edged spy/action movies where Bond was more of a bad ass than a super hero.

Brosnan was an excellent Bond but the scripts have been extremely weak and it doesn't help when the studio keeps trying to have Bond overshadowed by the Bond Girls.

D

AGuyNamedMike

I'm a nutty guy who has been chanting Clive Clive Clive for a couple of years.

jaeufraser

Well, I mean that's just silly. There's a market for Bond films, and lots of people still want to see them. Not to mention that the chances of them "quitting" on the series is...well...close to impossible.

Not to mention the quality isn't what I'd say necessarily denegerating. While the last three films haven't been that great, it's not like all Bond films were fantastic. I'll take Die Another Day over Moonraker anyday.

My beef is that Brosnan was a much better Bond than the movies that he carried. I really wanted to see a Bond movie that fit more in line with what Brosnan wanted to do...darker, so on.

But oh well. All I can say is DO NOT hire Jude Law or Ewan McGregor. They don't even come close to seeming to be like Bond. Well, nothing they've ever been in could convince me they'd be good as teh suave, cold hearted assassin named Bond. They're great actors, but far from convincing tough guys.

Clive...I could go for him though.