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The competition heats up as the latest batch of Celebrity MasterChef hopefuls battle it out for a...
Virgin Radio
22 Feb 2023, 14:47
Credit: Rex
Liam Neeson has shared the ultimatum he was given before deciding if he should play James Bond.
The Taken star was on the list to take over as 007 for 1995's GoldenEye, but late wife Natasha Richardson persuaded him otherwise with quite a big decision.
Speaking to Rolling Stone, Liam shared that he had been asked “a couple of times” by Bond producer Barbara Broccoli to take over from Timothy Dalton.
He explained: “I know the Broccolis. They looked at a bunch of actors. Schindler’s List had come out and Barbara [Broccoli] had called me a couple of times to ask if I was interested, and I said, ‘Yes, I would be interested.’”
It was then that Natasha gave her opinion, and as the two were set to get married at the time, the Parent Trap star put her foot down.
Liam continued: “My lovely wife [Natasha Richardson], God rest her soul, said to me while we were shooting Nell down in the Carolinas, ‘Liam, I want to tell you something: If you play James Bond, we’re not getting married.'”
The coveted role ended up going to Pierce Brosnan, who played the international spy for four movies - GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World is Not Enough and Die Another Day.
For Liam, it all worked out for him and Natasha. The couple tied the knot in 1994, and were married for 15 years before her tragic passing in 2009.
While Liam never got his chance to play 007, there is currently a big question over who will take over from the most recent Bond, Daniel Craig, now he’s made his official exit from the spy franchise.
Names that have been touted so far include Bridgerton’s Regé Jean-Page,Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Tom Hardy and Idris Elba.
It seems like we'll all have to wait quite a while until we find out who is taking up the title. Speaking to LADbible at the BAFTAs, producer Brocolli said: "No, we haven’t even started casting yet. There isn’t even a script!"
She continued: "The thing is, it’s going to be a couple of years off. And when we cast Bond, it’s a 10-12-year commitment.
"So he’s probably thinking, ‘Do I really want that thing? Not everybody wants to do that. It was hard enough getting [Daniel Craig to do it]. A lot of people think, “Oh yeah, it’d be fun to do one!” Well. That ain’t gonna work!"
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