Pierce Brosnan said goodbye to his role as James Bond 007 when negotiations came to a halt...

Pierce Brosnan - "Goodbye 007"
27th October 2004

Pierce Brosnan has given his final words (for now) on the James Bond saga to Hello Magazine. The UK issue, dated November 2nd, contains an interview conducted by Gabrielle Donnelly in which Brosnan lays to rest a lot of the rumours surrounding the 21st James Bond film and his tenure as 007.

Goodbye

"Once and for all, as far as my connection goes, Bond is over. If you ask me how did it become over, well, it's hard to find the truth in a town called Hollywood. In the middle of negotiations, everything stopped. I got a call and my agent said, "They've ceased negotiations". I said, "Why? How?". I never really got an answer, but the producer said they didn't know how to continue and I said, "Fair enough. Goodbye". It was good while it lasted. I wish them well, I wish the next man well. And that's what really happened."

I wasn't asking for a percentage. I was asking for a good honest fee in the realms of how much money they make and how much blood, sweat and tears I put into the role. Well, I thought it was fairly honest, anyway. I did hear on the street I might have outbid myself but I don't think it was about the money. Was it about getting a younger man? That's very possible, although nobody came to me and said, "Goodbye. We're getting a younger man!"

The Broccoli's are a powerful family in the sense they have complete control of this movie so they can do whatever they want. My contract was for four films and that's what I did.

"The Bond image will stick with me for the rest of my life. Bond is so iconic and so big and has been in our society for such a long time that any man who plays Bond and does so successfully will carry that. I’ll be one of the Bond's and I'm very comfortable with that and very proud of the ten years I spent doing this. But it's over for now and, when they get the next guy, I'll fade quietly into my career as an actor."

Life After 007

"I will say that as surprised as I was and as saddened as I was by the way the Bond thing came down, there's also this tremendous sense of liberation, of not having this job you do every two years or so. I have my own film company, and the fame I've gained from Bond has already allowed me to do other films. And now that I don't have the safety net of Bond, it does kind of spur me on as an actor to find really meaningful work and to challenge myself, and that’s where you find me at this moment in time."

Bond 21

Production of "Bond 21" is on hold after MGM announced that the planned release date of November 18th 2005 had been canned following production problems securing a director for the film.

Producers are expected to meet with Sony executives to discuss the future of the franchise as the takeover bid is completed.

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