It is still currently unknown what exactly the plan is for the James Bond franchise. The iconic series came to something of an end with Daniel Craig’s 2021 swansong No Time to Die, leaving fans to wonder what’s next for the iconic spy. Well, some 007 fans have an idea. X/Twitter user @PAPPADEMAS recently took to social media to share their pitch for an aged James Bond movie starring a former 007: GoldenEye’s Pierce Brosnan. And it’s hard not to fall in love with the idea of the Tomorrow Never Dies star wielding a licence to kill one final time.
“With each passing month it gets more and more frustrating that no one will greenlight a one-off “one last mission” movie about a reluctantly unretired 007, cast this man in it, and call it COMMANDER BOND.”
Clearly, we’re not the only ones who think Brosnan as an aged Bond is a great idea, with other 007 fans responding with eagerness at the pitch. User @PaxTobiPax says, “This would be a great idea to have a proper Brosnan epilogue with a director doing a one and done, while transitioning to a new Bond and a new creative team going forward afterwards. Who says no?” while @mtedder adds, “The Bond franchise does need its Dark Knight Returns moment.”
“Don’t think the franchise would let it happen but it’s a wonderful thought. Casting Brosnan as old Bond lured out of his Jamaican retirement is dead on,” says Bond fan @Corb_The_Lesser. However, as good as the idea is, some are likely to feel that “old Bond” has been done. After all, Daniel Craig spent three films being over the hill. Besides, as @Thievesbook points out, we may have already gotten a former actor back as an aged 007; “Already done – Sean in “The Rock” was really an ancient and venerable 007.” Despite these perfectly reasonable points, the idea of Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond being forced back into a tux and dragged back into the action is too good not to ponder.
Pierce Brosnan Is Still Kicking Ass & Taking Names Beyond Bond
Brosnan first starred as 007 in 1995’s GoldenEye before carrying out further missions in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The World Is Not Enough (1999), and Die Another Day (2002), the latter of which led to the Craig-led reboot, and remains the favorite iteration of the character for those of a certain generation. And anyone who has seen the actor recently knows he very much still looks the part. The actor, who is currently 71 years of age, continues to demonstrate his action chops, starring in the likes of the action thriller Fast Charlie and the action comedy The Out-Laws just last year. Brosnan is also due to continue his legacy as a cinematic spy in the upcoming thriller Black Bag from director Steven Soderbergh. All of which suggests he would still make a superb Bond even after all these years.
Currently, we have no idea what’s happening with the James Bond franchise moving forward. The actor hotly rumored for the role is Kick-Ass and Bullet Train star Aaron Taylor-Johnson, whom Brosnan has given his blessing, with the pair having starred together in the 2009 drama The Greatest.
“I think the man has the chops and the talent and the charisma to play Bond, very much so. One of the first movies we made, one of the earliest movies, was ‘The Greatest.’ And he was the greatest in it. So, yes, I read the news about his possibilities of being a Bond, so I would definitely tip my hat to the fellow.”
Other names in the running include Henry Cavill, Damson Idris, James Norton, and Regé-Jean Page, with Eon reportedly now meeting with potential directors. Names at the top of that particular list include the Academy Award-winning Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front), Kelly Marcel (Venom: The Last Dance), Australian filmmaker David Michôd (Animal Kingdom, The Rover), Bart Layton (The Imposter, American Animals), and Yann Demange (’71, Top Boy). Whatever form James Bond finds himself in when the franchise returns, it will be hard not to imagine the action movie brilliance of one last mission with Pierce Brosnan’s 007.