Actor and comedian Dick Van Dyke said he once turned down an offer to become the next James Bond, a role producers floated to him during the franchise's early years.
Van Dyke, 99, appearing on NBC's "Today" show, said producer Albert "Cubby" Broccoli approached him about replacing Sean Connery. The topic came about when host Al Roker asked Van Dyke about long-rumored casting discussions.
"You could have almost become James Bond?" Roker said.
"I almost did," Van Dyke said. "Cubby Broccoli came to me, and said, 'Would you like to be Bond?'"
Broccoli had worked with Van Dyke on the 1968 film "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," an adaptation of a children's story written by Bond novelist Ian Fleming.
At the time, Broccoli was leading the effort to turn Fleming's spy novels into a worldwide film series, starting with "Dr. No" in 1962 and carrying it forward. According to Van Dyke, the producer viewed him as a possible replacement after Connery signaled his intention to step away from the role.
Van Dyke said he turned it down because he doubted he could convincingly pull off a British accent.
"I said, 'Have you heard my British accent?'" he recalled, adding a joking "click" to indicate how quickly the offer ended.
He also said audiences that knew him from family films might not have accepted him in the role of the British agent.
Van Dyke reflected on how the casting choice might have altered his career. He said the project "would have been a great experience," though he remained unsure if audiences that linked him with films such as "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" or "Mary Poppins" would have "accepted it from me."
Broccoli's interest in Van Dyke came at a turning point for the Bond series.
"Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" was released in late 1968, shortly after Connery completed "You Only Live Twice" in 1967. Although it wasn't Connery's last turn as Bond, producers began looking at other actors for upcoming films.
Connery originated the role in the first five installments before stepping away and making room for George Lazenby, who starred in one film before departing.
Connery later returned for "Diamonds Are Forever" in 1971 and appeared again in 1983's "Never Say Never Again," a non-Eon production.
After Connery and Lazenby exited the franchise, Roger Moore assumed the lead role.
Moore ultimately matched Connery's total of seven performances as Bond, solidifying another long-running era in the series.
The franchise is undergoing notable changes again.
Broccoli's heirs, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, handed creative oversight of the franchise to Amazon this year for the first time in its six-decade run, following Amazon's acquisition of MGM, Entertainment Weekly reported.
The shift comes as the producers prepare to recast Bond after Daniel Craig's final appearance in the 2021 film "No Time to Die."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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