‘Casino Royale’ Director Feared Daniel Craig Wasn’t as ‘Sexy’ as Other Bond Actors: ‘He Wasn’t a Traditional Handsome Guy’
variety.comZack Sharf Digital News Director “Casino Royale” director Martin Campbell recently told Express UK that he was concerned Daniel Craig wasn’t sexy enough to be James Bond when his name was thrown into the ring to replace Pierce Brosnan as 007.
The filmmaker had previously directed Brosnan in the beloved 1995 Bond tentpole “GoldenEye” and was returning to the franchise at the time to launch a new 007 following Brosnan’s exit after 2002’s “Die Another Day.” “My only reticence with Daniel…he was really a superb actor, there’s no doubt about that,” Campbell said. “It was the fact that with people like Sean Connery, Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan was that they were all traditional-looking Bonds.
All handsome guys, all sexy, all very attractive to women and so forth.” “Daniel was obviously tougher and rugged, but he wasn’t a traditional handsome guy,” he added. “So I just thought about that for a minute and apart from that, absolutely it was always him.” Campbell said there were “eight people” in contention to become the new Bond in “Casino Royale.” “It’s very democratic,” he explained of the selection process. “You sit around a table…It was myself and the producers, casting director, etc.
And you go through the eight people and you put your hand up as you talk through each person and ultimately everybody has to be unanimous in their decision, if you see what I mean.” One actor who was considered for Bond at the time was Henry Cavill, long before he would become DC’s Superman.
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