June 21, 2017
By Ryan Porzl
In the James Bond world, Timothy Dalton is best remembered as the fourth James Bond succeeding Roger Moore and bringing up about a darker tone to the series in an attempt to be more closer than the Ian Fleming novels the movies were based off of. Unfortunately, Dalton's approach was polarizing and legal problems over the series as well as other issues saw Dalton exit after only two films. Despite his brief run as 007, Dalton has had quite the journey leading up to Bond and an interesting aftermath with redemption. This article will look back at Dalton's early life/career, his eighteen year journey and false starts as the world's most famous secret agent, his run & departure, and aftermath.
Early Life/Other Projects (1944/1946-1986)
Timothy Leonard Dalton Leggett was born in Colwyn Bay, North Wales on March 21, 1946. Dalton's birth year has been conflicting but the latter seems to be the popular one and more used one. By the time he was four, his family moved to England where he went to the Herbert Strutt Grammar School and was a member of the Air Training Corps as a teenager. At 16, he decided to pursue acting as seeing a production of MacBeth and later got a role in the Old Vic. In 1964, Dalton left school to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and would go on to tour with the National Youth Theater. Two years later, he left the Academy without completing his studies to join the Birmingham Reportory Theater where he appeared in productions such as The Merchant of Venice and Richard III where he played the title character.
By 1968, Dalton began making appearances on Television for the BBC and made his film debut in the Academy Award nominated film The Lion In Winter playing Prince Philip of France opposite Peter O'Toole, Audrey Hepburn (who won an Academy Award), and Anthony Hopkins (in his first major role) while the film ironically was scored by long time James Bond composer John Barry (who also won an Academy Award). He followed it up with a busy 1970 which including Withering Heights which also featured future Bond villian Julian Glover (Aristotle Kristatos in For Your Eyes Only), Cromwell which included James Bond alumni Patrick McGee (Sir Godfrey Tibbert in A View To A Kill), Charles Gray (Dikko Henderson in You Only Live Twice & Ernst Stavro Blofeld in Diamonds Are Forever), & Geoffrey Keen (The Minister of Defense in six James Bond films) and The Voyeur. Following 1971's Mary, Queen of Scots, Dalton returned to theater for another seven years with the exception of the 1975 film Permission To Kill. That same year, he also headed the cast of the revival of The Vortex while starring in many productions of Shakespeare including MacBeth, Romeo & Juliet, and Henry V while also appearing in Henry IV Part I and II & King Lear.
By 1978, Dalton began to focus on TV and Movies in both England and The United States of America. Unfortunately, he stumbled out of the gate when that same year he co-starred with sex symbol Mae West in Sexette which was her final role. The movie was not only a failure but earned Dalton and West a Stinker Award nomination for Worst Couple. He followed it up with a guest appearance on the American Television show Charlie's Angels where his character was ironically described as "almost James Bond-ian". He then did the movie Agatha (directed by The World Is Not Enough director Michael Apted) with partner Vanessa Redgrave & Dustin Hoffman in 1979 and followed with Flash Gordon a year later playing Prince Barin with the latter featuring other Bond alumni including Max Von Sydow (Ernst Stavro Blofeld in Never Say Never Again), Chaim Topol (Milos Columbo in For Your Eyes Only which Dalton nearly starred in), and Robbie Coltrane (Valentin Zukovsky in Goldeneye and The World Is Not Enough). Dalton eventually finished his pre-Bond run with the 1983 Television Miniseries Jane Eyre where he played Edward Fairfox Rochester as well as several movie roles and TV appearances.
The Road To James Bond and False Starts (1968-1986)
While many know Dalton played James Bond, many have no idea that Dalton's journey to the role was eighteen years in the making with many offers that he turned down for one reason or another while other times he was on the short list. Dalton was first offered the role in 1968 shortly after Sean Connery first left the role. Dalton would ultimately turn the part down feeling he was too young for the role. He would later claim another reason being that he didn't think he could follow Connery. Eventually, Australian model turned actor George Lazenby was cast and did 1969's On Her Majesty's Secret Service but left the role after that due to advice from his agent who believed Bond would lose steam in the 1970s. Connery would then be lured back for a sixth outing in 1971's Diamonds Are Forever but would depart again after that along with vowing he would never portray Bond again. With Connery seemingly gone for good, the search for a new Bond was on and Dalton was again approached to play James Bond in 1972. However, Dalton again turned it down for the same reasons he did four years before. Ultimately, Roger Moore was cast and signed a three picture deal which included 1973's Live and Let Die, 1974's The Man With The Golden Gun, and 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me while also returning for a fourth outing in 1979's Moonraker.
In 1980, Moore became uncertain of his future as Bond and hinted he might not return for another movie. Moore turned 53 that October and began to worry about overstaying his welcome while turning Bond from a suave secret agent to a dirty old man. When it was unknown whether he come back, a semi-quest was made to potentially find the next Bond. Again, producer Albert R. "Cubby" Broccoli was interested in Dalton and offered him the role. What happened afterward has been conflicted as one story was that Dalton again turned it down as he wasn't happy with the direction the series was going at the time (likely referring to the over the top nature of The Spy Who Loved Me & Moonraker) while another story is he was all but signed before Moore decided to come back. The former is the more common story told but it didn't matter as Moore agreed to come back for a fifth time and did 1981's For Your Eyes Only. Afterwards, Moore again gave the impression he was done so Broccoli and the staff considered possible options. Dalton was on the short list as was American actor James Brolin and British actor Michael Billington (Billington screen tested multiple times over the years and had a small role in The Spy Who Loved Me). However, before anyone was offered the role, Eon Productions would have a big problem on their hands but we need to backtrack first.
In 1958, James Bond author Ian Fleming intended to try and transition Bond to the big screen. He eventually recruited screenwriter Jack Whittingham and director, producer, and screenwriter Kevin McClory to help co-write a new story to debut Bond in movies. The three eventually wrote the screenplay Longitude 78 West but after going into pre-production, the project was eventually cancelled. three years later, Fleming went back to the screenplay and seeing it's potential worked on it and released it in 1961 as the ninth Bond novel Thunderball. However, he failed to give either Whittingham or McClory any credit and upon hearing of it's upcoming release, the two sued in court with Whittingham eventually backing out and siding with McClory. By November 1963, the case went to the high counts but Fleming quickly settled out of court at the suggestion of friend Ivar Bryce as Fleming was in poor health having suffered a heart attack two years earlier before the second court case. As part of the settlement, Fleming retain the rights to the novel while McClory got damages, the rights to the screenplay, the movie rights, the character of Ernst Stavro Blofeld, his white cat, the organization SPECTRE, and the story of the hijacking of atomic bombs. All Thunderball movies and future releases of the novel also had to have the claim "Based on an original story by Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham, and Ian Fleming" in that order. Following this, McClory had planned to make his own Thunderball movie but by late 1964, Eon Productions released Goldfinger as the third James Bond movie which was a huge success and launched the series into the stratosphere. With McClory knowing it be best to partner with Broccoli and then co-producer Harry Saltzman while Broccoli & Saltzman wanted to get all the Bond films in their umbrella, the two sides struck a deal for Thunderball to be the fourth Bond film in 1965. McClory would serve as a producer but would sign an agreement where he couldn't do another Thunderball movie for at least ten years. In 1975, the deal ended and McClory wasted no time in doing his own Bond film. Eon and McClory would eventually spend the next seven years in court battles but by 1982, McClory was granted the right to do his Thunderball remake. To rub salt in Eon's wounds, McClory would eventually drop a massive bombshell when he announced who would play James Bond in the remake: Sean Connery. The movie marked Connery's seventh as 007 and his first in twelve years. The announcement was huge and got the movie a lot of attention. Originally to be called James Bond of the Secret Service, the film's name was changed to Never Say Never Again due to Eon convincing a judge it was too similar to On Her Majesty's Secret Service and the new name being suggested from Connery's wife due to him vowing he would never play Bond again. Once Connery's involvement was announced, Broccoli recontacted Moore and convinced him to return believing Moore would be the only one with enough firepower to combat Connery. Moore agreed and did his sixth movie 1983's Octopussy. This period of time would be referred to as "The Battle of the Bonds" especially when it was planned for both films to be released on the same day but were eventually moved with Octopussy coming in May while Never Say Never Again came out in October. In the end, Eon and Moore would emerge victorious as both films were critically and commercially successful but Octopussy beat out Never Say Never Again as Octopussy grossed $183.7 million dollars while Never Say Never Again grossed $160 million dollars. However, the win was a small one and this was the only good news to come out of it. For one thing, Octopussy was a big success but grossed twelve million dollars less than For Your Eyes Only. Moore was also starting to push it as well as he was 55 when filming and turned 56 in 1983. Basically, Eon had a victory but the movie continued a decline in gross after peaking with Moonraker and had an aging Bond who's time was running out.
Following Octopussy, it was the same song and dance as once again it was unknown if Roger Moore would return and once again Timothy Dalton was on the short list. However, this didn't last long as Eon announced on December 15, 1983, the same day that Never Say Never Again premiered in the UK that Moore would in fact return. Moore's seventh and final Bond film would be 1985's A View To A Kill. Having it's film premiere on May 22, 1985, the film would be another success but also had many problems. Though financially successful, the movie grossed $152.4 million dollars which was a $30 million dollar drop from Octopussy. The reviews were mixed to negative with most Bond fans usually considering it one of the worst in the series. Out of all the complaints, the chief one was Moore's involvement as Moore was 57 when it was released and turned 58 that October. Even though he was beloved as Bond, everyone knew Moore finally jumped the shark and it was obvious he was too old to be playing Bond. To be fair, Moore also knew this as he even joked about it in 2007 saying he was 400 years too old for the part. When the dust settled, it was clear to everyone a change needed to be made from fans to Eon to Moore himself. On December 3, 1985, after seven movies and twelve years, Roger Moore officially announced his retirement as James Bond. With Moore officially done, 1986 would begin with an official search for a new Bond. Dalton was offered the role a fourth time and was the original choice. Unfortunately, by that point, Dalton had already committed to the movie Brenda Starr starring Brooke Shields as well as theater commitments and asked if production could be delayed but when Broccoli wouldn't delay it, Dalton was forced to turn it down again. After Dalton appeared to be out, Eon struggled to find someone else. Sam Neill (Dr. Alan Grant in Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III) was screen tested and impressed many but Broccoli wasn't sold and passed on him. Sean Bean (the future Alec Trevalyan in Goldeneye) was also on the short list. Eventually, Broccoli seemed to settle on a man most thought would not only be perfect in the role but that he was born to play Bond: Pierce Brosnan.
The Irish Brosnan was no stranger to Eon Productions as the then up and coming actor first appeared on their radar when he visited the set of For Your Eyes Only in 1981 as his then wife Cassandra Harris appeared playing Countess Lisl von Schlaf. Brosnan was introduced to Broccoli and seemed to hit it off with Broccoli at one point saying if Brosnan could act then he's his guy. Most of Eon also seem to think he would be the one when Moore retired. A year later, Brosnan landed his big break when casted as the title character on the NBC television show Remington Steele which premiered on October 1, 1982. The show would quickly become a hit and established Brosnan in Hollywood. The role not only made Brosnan a star but the general audience began to look at him as a future James Bond. Brosnan was such a popular choice that he reportedly won a magazine poll handily in 1983 on who should be the next James Bond despite the poll also containing stars like Tom Selleck, Mel Gibson, and Jeremy Irons. The Washington Post also wrote that Brosnan "could make it as a young James Bond". By late 1985, it seemed like Brosnan was getting closer to the role with Roger Moore's official retirement, Timothy Dalton out, and Remington Steele's ratings' declining which meant the show would likely be cancelled the following spring. Sure enough, on May 15, 1986, NBC announced the cancellation of Remington Steele and Brosnan was one step further to signing. During this time, Broccoli reportedly offered Brosnan the part but decided to hold off on the contract as NBC had sixty days to change their minds on renewing the show. In the end, it didn't seem like anything would happen as shows rarely get renewed after getting cancelled so it felt like everyone would have to wait another two months before Brosnan's coronation. Unfortunately, a lot can happen in two months which Brosnan and Eon found out the hard way as the rumors swirling about Brosnan about to be Bond renewed interest in Remington Steele and the summer reruns saw an increase in the ratings plus fans of the show started a letter write in campaign to save it and NBC saw all of this unfolding. Because of everything that was happening, NBC President Brandon Tartikoff officially announced on July 15, 1986, the 59th day of NBC's sixty day period, that he was reversing the decision and renewing Remington Steele. Due to this happening on the waiting period, Brosnan was now forced back to the show for at least another year. NBC thought they scored a massive coup by renewing Remington Steele with the thought being that the new James Bond was going to star in it which would revive the show. Unfortunately, NBC was left with egg on their face as Broccoli immediately rescinded the contract offer to Brosnan upon hearing the announcement as he didn't want his Bond actor tied to a TV Show. Tartikoff tried to salvage the deal by offering to shoot the new season in England and around The Living Daylights schedule but Broccoli wasn't interested and ended the whole scenario with the quote "James Bond will not be Remington Steele and Remington Steele will not be James Bond". The whole move backfired badly on NBC as they renewed the show based off Brosnan becoming Bond and once that didn't happen, interest in Remington Steele plummeted again and the network got bad publicity when it became clear Brosnan became disgruntled on losing out on Bond. Eventually, the network washed it hands on the whole mess as best they could by only bringing Remington Steele back for six made for TV movies that aired from January 5 to April 12, 1987 before it was cancelled for good. Brosnan would have to wait another day for his turn.
As fate would have it, Dalton was working on Brenda Starr the whole time the Brosnan situation was happening and by July 1986 was nearly finished with it. Due to this, Broccoli's wife Dana encouraged him to try Dalton again. He agreed and the two eventually met with Broccoli asking him to not only screen test but also said he was willing to delay production for another six weeks so Dalton can finish Brenda Starr. Dalton was hesitant feeling his track record was good enough but was finally convinced by Broccoli's stepson and current co-producer Michael G. Wilson who said it wasn't about his talent but that they needed to see him as Bond to get an idea of what they would get on camera. Dalton agreed and screen tested two scenes from On Her Majesty's Secret Service which was ironically the movie he originally turned down. The screen test showed how Dalton would come off as both a lover and a killer. Eon was impressed and Dalton was quickly offered the part again. This time, he would finally agree and on July 29, 1986, Dalton officially signed a six year, three picture with a fourth option contract which made him the fourth James Bond with the announcement following on August 6th. Prior to signing as Bond and during the press conference, he made it a point to Broccoli and later to the public that he wouldn't portray Bond the same way Moore did for so many years. With Moore having played a light hearted and charming Bond whose movies had plenty of humor and over the top moments, Dalton intended his Bond to be as close to Ian Fleming's original vision and how he was portrayed in the novels as much as possible. Dalton would even famously go as far as reread all of the Ian Fleming novels to prepare for the role and even would bring them up repeatedly during filming. His Bond would be much darker, more gritty (a popular word in the Bond universe), and no nonsense. After twelve years of Moore's version, fans were about to be given as much of a 180 as they could get. However, Dalton didn't have time to sit around as production was already underway on The Living Daylights as Dalton was wrapping up Brenda Starr. In fact, he apparently finished Brenda Starr on a Saturday, flew to Gilbrator where the opening scene was being filmed on Sunday, and was filming on Monday. Principal photography officially began on September 17, 1986.
The Living Daylights (1987)
Dalton's first Bond film would be 1987's The Living Daylights. The film sees Bond assist the defection of General Koskov to the West and is later briefed by Koskov that new KGB head General Pushkin is responsible for a recent agent's death by reinstating the "Smiert Spionan" (Death To Spies) Campaign. After Koskov is seemingly captured and supposedly sent back, Bond is assigned to kill Pushkin but is skeptical and decides to investigate by meeting up with Koskov's girlfriend Kara Milovy, a Czech cellist with the hope she would lead him to Koskov. Bond eventually confronts Pushkin and realizes he's been framed while Koskov has been doing business with International arms dealer Brad Whittaker. Bond is eventually captured while Kara is betrayed by Koskov with the two being sent to a prison in Afghanistan. While there, they discover Koskov and Whittaker's scheme as Koskov had been stealing Russian funds to purchase Afghan opium with a street value of $500 million dollars. He would then plan to sell it to Americans to not only supply the Russians with their own arms but also purchase more from Whittaker. Bond eventually helps release Mujahideen leader Kamran Shah and ruins Koskov and Whittaker's opium deal while taking out their main henchmen Necros. It eventually leads to a confrontation with Whittaker at his Tangiers villa with some help of CIA friend and contact Felix Leiter while Koskov is arrested by Pushkin.
Maryam d'Abo played Kara Milovy, the Bond girl of the movie, Koskov's girlfriend, and Bond's love interest. Joe Don Baker and Jeroen Krabbe played villains Brad Whittaker and General Georgi Koskov, respectively with Whittaker being an international arms dealer obsessed with the military but was disgracefully expelled from West Point Academy for cheating while Koskov was a Soviet General who defects to the West to avoid arrest and then attempts to manipulate MI6 into assassinating General Pushkin while trying to arm the Soviets during their war with the Mujahideen. John Rhys-Davies played General Leonid Pushkin who replaced General Gogol as the new head of the KGB and is being set up by Koskov to look as though he ordered the death of MI6 agents after attempting to arrest Koskov for stealing state funds. Art Malik played Kamran Shah who was a leader of the Mujahideen that is freed by Bond and later assists him. Andreas Wisniewski played Necros who was Koskov's henchmen responsible for helping Koskov leave England and continue the Smiert Spionam facade. Robert Brown returned for a third time as Bond's boss M, Desmond Llewelyn returned for the 13th time as Q, and Caroline Bliss made her debut as Miss Moneypenny having replaced Lois Maxwell who played the character in the previous fourteen films. Walter Gotell also made his sixth and final appearance as General Antol Gogol who was the former head of the KGB but now a diplomat. Gotell's Gogol was intended to be a larger role and the one being framed by Koskov but Gotell was in poor health which resulted in the creation of the General Pushkin character and Gogol having a cameo.
The film was co-produced by Broccoli and his stepson Michael G. Wilson while daughter Barbara served as an associate producer. John Glen returned for the fourth time in a row as director. Screenwriter Richard Maibaum returned for a twelfth outing as he co-wrote the screenplay with Wilson. Maurice Binder returned for a thirteenth outing as title designer. John Barry returned for an eleventh and final time as composer. The title song was sung by A-Ha whose collaberation with Barry wasn't great and resulted in two versions of the theme with Barry's appearing in the movie while A-Ha's appeared in their 1988 album Stay On These Roads while a secondary song "If There Was A Man" was performed by The Pretenders.
The Living Daylights was the 15th James Bond movie from Eon Productions and was released on the 25th anniversary. The filmed marked the debut of Dalton as Bond and Caroline Bliss as Miss Moneypenny. Joe Don Baker made his first appearance in a Bond film and would later return as CIA agent Jack Wade in 1995's Goldeneye and 1997's Tomorrow Never Dies. Walter Gotell made his final appearance in a Bond movie having played villain Mozeny in 1963's From Russia With Love and six appearances as General Antol Gogol since The Spy Who Loved Me. Legendary composer John Barry made his final participation in a Bond film. Barry originally arranged the James Bond theme for 1962's Dr. No and composed eleven other movies. The film was the first since 1971's Diamonds Are Forever not to feature Roger Moore as Bond in a Eon Produced Bond movie. Bond drove an Aston Martin for the first time since 1969's On Her Majesty's Secret Service. The character Felix Leiter made a return not having appeared in an Eon Bond since 1973's Live And Let Die. The Living Daylights was the last Bond film to use a title from an Ian Fleming novel or story until Casino Royale in 2006.
The Living Daylights had it's premiere on June 27, 1987 and proved to be a huge success earning mostly positive reviews while grossing $191.2 million dollars worldwide which was nearly a $40 million dollar increase from A View To a Kill. This made the film more successful than Moore's two previous Bonds and was the third highest grossing Bond at the time not counting for inflation as it was only behind Moonraker ($210.3 Million Dollars) and For Your Eyes Only ($195.3 Million Dollars). It was a great start for Dalton and appeared that the new Bond and direction was just what the doctor ordered. However, the celebration wouldn't last long.
Licence To Kill (1989)
Dalton's second and last outing as 007 would be 1989's Licence To Kill. Licence To Kill is one of the more interesting and experimental Bonds in the series five decade and counting history. Unlike the usual Bond where Bond is sent to investigate and stop some megalomaniac type villain while representing Queen and Country, Licence To Kill saw Bond resign from MI6 and go on a vendetta against Drug Lord Franz Sanchez. The film starts with Bond about to serve as Felix Leiter's best man before briefly deviating to tag along as Leiter and the DEA pursue Sanchez after finding out he's in the Bahamas to retrieve girlfriend Lupe Lamora. Thanks to Bond, Sanchez is captured and Leiter is married. However, Sanchez escapes after bribing one of Leiter's colleagues and sends his men to murder Leiter's wife while Leiter is maimed by a shark. Upon finding out, Bond investigates but his efforts are briefly foiled by the DEA and MI6 due to Sanchez no longer being in their jurisdiction. Determined to avenge Leiter and his wife, Bond resigns from MI6 and recuits pilot & CIA informant Pam Bouvier to help him. They make their way to The Republic of Isthmus where Q eventually joins in (due to Moneypenny asking) by offering Bond gadgets and assistance. Bond poses as a gun for hire where he discovers Sanchez's main weakness which is paranoia as loyalty means everything to him and expects loyalty from his people. After a failed assassination attempt thwarted by MI6 and Hong Kong narcotics agents sent to infiltrate Sanchez, Bond is ironically rescued by Sanchez and starts to gain his trust. Bond eventually plays off Sanchez's paranoia by having him believe his men aren't as loyal as he thinks they are which eventually results in Sanchez unraveling. Despite eventually getting exposed by Sanchez's henchmen Dario, Bond eventually destroys Sanchez's base that he uses to turn cocaine into petrol and with the help of Pam, eventually goes on a chase involving Sanchez's tankers before eventually killing Sanchez thanks to a gift previously given to him by Leiter and his wife.
Carey Lowell and Talisa Soto played Bond girls Pam Bouvier and Lupe Lamora, respectively with Bouvier being an ex-army pilot, CIA informant, and who assists Bond in Isthmus while Lamora is Sanchez's suffering girlfriend who continually attempts to escape and starts secretly helping Bond against Sanchez. Robert Davi played Franz Sanchez who was the main villain and a powerful drug lord who more or less controls the Republic of Isthmus while being known for his ability to escape jail due to intimidation and multi-million dollar bribes. Anthony Zerbe played Milton Krest who ran the Wavekrest Marine Research in Florida while secretly working for Sanchez and assisted in his escape in the beginning of the film. Robert Brown returned for a fourth and final time as M, Desmond Llewelyn returned for a 14th time as Q, and Caroline Bliss returned for a second and final time as Miss Moneypenny. Along with these castmembers, License To Kill also had many other interesting and/or famous names. David Hedison played Felix Leiter having already played the character sixteen years earlier in Live And Let Die. This marked the first time an actor played Leiter more than once and the last until Jeffrey Wright played Leiter in 2006's Casino Royale and 2008's Quantum of Solace. Pedro Armendariz Jr. played President Hector Lopez. Armendariz's father Pedro Armendariz previously played Kerim Bey 26 years earlier in From Russia With Love. A then unknown Benicio Del Toro played Dario, Sanchez's switch blade wielding henchman. At 21 years old at the time of filming, Del Toro holds the record for the youngest actor to play a Bond villain. He's also the second Academy Award winning actor to play a Bond villain after Christopher Walken played Max Zorin in A View To A Kill but unlike Walken, Javier Bardum (Raoul Silva in 2012's Skyfall) and Christoph Waltz (Ernst Stavro Blofeld in 2015's Spectre), Del Toro had yet to win his Oscar. Finally, there was "Mr. Las Vegas" Wayne Newton who played Professor Joe Butcher, a TV evangelist who served as a middleman for Sanchez.
Most of the behind the scenes crew returned as Albert R. "Cubby" Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson were co-producers while Barbara Broccoli served as associate producer. Richard Maibaum returned for the thirteenth time as screenwriter along with Wilson. Glen returned for a fifth outing as director, which made him the first to direct five Bonds and he currently holds the record along with most in a row. Michael Kamen served as composer which would be the only Bond he would compose. Kamen replaced John Barry who was set to return but throat surgery prevented him from working on the film. Kamen was hired as Glen thought he was the closest thing to John Barry. Kamen previously composed Pink Floyd - The Wall, Die Hard, The first two Lethal Weapon, and Highlander while later composing Die Hard 2, Die Hard With A Vengeance, Lethal Weapon 3 & 4, Mr. Holland's Opus, and X-Men. Barry never returned to the James Bond series again before his 2011 death. The title song was sung by Gladys Knight after a song Eric Clapton and Vic Flick (who played lead guitar on the original James Bond theme) was rejected despite it matching Dalton's gritty performance. Patti LaBelle's If You Asked Me To was the secondary song.
Licence To Kill saw many changes and had a somewhat troubled production. Originally, plans were for the movie to be filmed in China which is somewhere Bond had never been and scenes were written involving a chase on the Great Wall of China, a fight scene involving the Terrcotta Army, and Bond taking on a drug lord in The Golden Triangle. However, plans changed when The Last Emperor was released and the novelty of filming in China wore off hence the creation of the fictional Republic of Isthmus. As mentioned, John Barry was supposed to return but his throat surgery forced him out. Richard Maibaum was eventually forced out before the script could be written due to the 1988 Writer's Guild of America Strike which forced Wilson to finish on his own. The script borrowed ideas from Fleming's books while also taking from Ronin movies including Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo. The movie was also the first not to have any filming whatsoever at Pinewood Studios due to the Film Act being passed in 1985 which resulted in foreign studios being taxed heavily. Only post production and sound re-recording happened in Pinewood while the film was shot in Florida and Mexico. The area with the tanker chase scene was said to be haunted and strange occurrences happened during filming with the most notable during an explosion when a still photographer took a picture and it had what appeared to be a flaming hand emerging from the flames. The film was also originally to be called Licence Revoked but was changed right before release since American audiences found the term more to do with driver's licenses. The film would also be rated PG-13 in America making it the first for a Bond film and all Bond films have had the rating since.
Licence To Kill had it's premiere on June 13, 1989 and proved to be another success but nowhere near as much as The Living Daylights. Critics were mostly positive about the movie but heavily criticized it for Dalton's darker portrayal and being too violent. The worldwide gross was $156.1 million dollars which was as $35 million dollar drop and was considered a huge disappointment while it failed to catch on in America only grossing $34.6 million dollars which makes it the lowest American gross of a Bond film to date not counting inflation though the picture was a big success internationally. Many reasons have been used to explain the disappointing performance especially in America. The first one being the title change which then resulted in poor promotion. Eon Productions had the promotional material ready to go and lots of it but it all had the Licence Revoked title on it. Once the title change happened, the material had to be changed but they didn't have enough time to alter all of it so they had fewer promotional material then they hoped for. Broccoli himself would also later complain about the poor promotional campaign. Another major issue was the movie's summer release. While Bond films have been released there before, the 1989 summer was one of the most competitive in American movie history. Along with Licence To Kill, the summer months also saw the releases of Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade (which ironically featured many Bond alumni chief among them being Sean Connery), Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, When Harry Met Sally, Ghostbusters II, Honey I Shrunk The Kids, Batman, and Lethal Weapon 2. Combine the competition with poor promotion and Licence To Kill was completely screwed. It should also be pointed out that because of this, no Bond film, as of 2017, has been released in America during the summer since Licence To Kill with all Bond films since being released in the months of November or December.
The disappointment of Licence To Kill would lead to another case where the future of the James Bond series was called into question. Dalton was even quoted as saying "My feeling is this will be the last one. I don't mean my last one, I mean the end of the whole lot. I don't speak with any real authority, but it's sort of a feeling I have". Broccoli also questioned his own leadership and put up Danjaq (the parent company of Eon Productions and the owners of the James Bond movie rights) up for sale.
Licence To Kill would be the end of a huge chapter in the James Bond series as it was not only the last one of the 1980s but it also would be the last James Bond movie for many people on and off camera with some having been there on and off since the series began back in 1962. This would be the last Bond film for screenwriter Richard Maibaum (who passed away in 1991) who wrote or co-wrote 13 out of the then 16 Eon Bond movies, director and editor John Glen who directed five Bonds and worked on three as editor, editor John Grover, cinematographer Alec Mills, title designer Maurice Binder (who passed away in 1991) who did 14 of the then 16 Bond films, Robert Brown who played M for four movies, Caroline Bliss who played Miss Moneypenny for both Dalton movies, and Dalton, himself. The film would also be the somewhat final one for producer Albert R. "Cubby" Broccoli as he was in poor health by the time Goldeneye went into production and was only a presenter & consultant with Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson doing the production.
The Property of a Lady (1991, Cancelled)
Despite the bleak future of the Bond series following Licence To Kill, Dalton was set to star in a third Bond film intended for a late 1991 release. It's been rumored the film was going to be called "The Property of a Lady" (an Ian Fleming title) but the movie didn't get far enough into production before an official name was announced. In the 25 years since work began on it, we do know some things that were planned both on and off camera.
The film would begin with an attack on a Scottish Nuclear Facility that would eventually send James Bond to Japan and Hong Kong to investigate the Chinese/British business man and entrepreneur Sir Henry Lee Ching during which he would reunite with his former mentor and retiring secret agent Denholm Crisp who would later be revealed as the main villain behind everything. Bond would then run into the Chinese Secret Service and work with jewel smuggler/CIA freelancer Connie Webb in an attempt to stop World War 3 from happening.
With Licence To Kill doing lackluster in the American market, Broccoli considered putting Danjaq and Eon Productions up for sale at the end of 1989 but nothing came of it, apparently MGM/United Artist balked at Broccoli's asking price of either 200 million dollars or 200 million pounds. While The Broccoli Family continued on as heads of Bond, Broccoli did know changes were needed to revive the Bond series and it was a case of out with the old and in with the new. Right around the time The Property of a Lady began production, Broccoli parted ways with Richard Maibaum and John Glen in what was considered a "bloodless coup" though their departures weren't announced until August. Maibaum had co-written thirteen of the then sixteen James Bond movies Eon had done (1967's You Only Live Twice, 1973's Live and Let Die, and 1979's Moonraker being the exception) and had been with the series since the first Bond movie Dr. No in 1962. In the end, Maibaum's departure didn't mean much as he eventually passed away on January 4, 1991 at the age of 81 due to a brief illness. Glen originally served as an editor on 1969's On Her Majesty's Secret Service and later returned for 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me and 1979's Moonraker before directing all five of Eon's 1980s Bond films including 1981's For Your Eyes Only, 1983's Octopussy, 1985's A View To A Kill, 1987's The Living Daylights, and 1989's Licence To Kill. Glen left the series having directed more Bond films than anyone as well as the most in a row which are records he still holds as of 2017. With them gone, Broccoli then began looking for fresh blood. He first recruited Alfonse Ruggiero Jr. to help Wilson on the screenplay. Ruggiero was a television writer best known for his writing and producing on the 1980s show Wiseguy where he received an Emmy nomination for Best Drama Series and also wrote for other classic 80s shows such as Airwolf and Miami Vice. Ruggiero was brought on after he impressed Eon on some ideas he pitched. Together, he and Wilson wrote a seventeen page outline. It was also rumored that screenwriters Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz were being brought in to help write the screenplay. Huyck and Katz were a writing couple who were mostly known for their collaborations with George Lucas having wrote or co-wrote American Graffiti, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, the infamous Howard The Duck, and did some uncredited writing for Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Broccoli then hinted that either John Landis, Ted Kotcheff, and John Byrum would likely direct. Landis was best known for his comedies with Saturday Night Live alumnis John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, and Eddie Murphy such as National Lampoon's Animal House, The Blues Brothers, Trading Places, Spies Like Us, Coming To America, and later, Beverly Hills Cop 3. Landis also directed Michael Jackson's music videos for Thriller and Black Or White as well as the controversial The Twilight Zone: The Movie which resulted in him under investigation for involuntary manslaughter after veteran actor Vic Morrow and two child actors were killed in an accident on set. Kotcheff previously directed the first Rambo movie First Blood as well as comedies such as the 1977 version of Fun With Dick & Jane and Weekend At Bernie's and later directed and produced episodes of the police drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Byrum previously directed Bill Murray's first attempt at drama with The Razor's Edge. While work began on The Property of a Lady, promotion did too as a poster promoting Bond 17 was featured at The Carlton Hotel during the 1990 Cannes Film Festival.
Along with Dalton returning, it's likely that Robert Brown, Desmond Llewelyn, and Caroline Bliss were returning for their respective roles. Anthony Hopkins was the front runner to play Denholm Crisp and Elizabeth Hurley was set to play a Bond girl. The script also revealed that the classic Aston Martin DB5 from Goldfinger would be used for one final mission.
Unfortunately, as Bond 17 was in early stages, other things were going on that would put production and the movie to a halt. During 1990, MGM/UA (The financial backers and distributors of the Bond films) was briefly sold to European company Quintex which wanted to merge with Pathe Entertainment (both deals eventually fell through). During this time, The Bond catalog was leased to Pathe at a lower-than-market value and without consulting with Danjaq. Upon hearing of this, Broccoli sued in court by October 1990. Because of this, The Property of a Lady was scrapped and Bond 17 along with The Bond Series was put on hold until the legal problems concluded. While the two sides fought in court over the next two years, Dalton would decide to keep himself busy as he filmed The Rocketeer in 1991 playing main villain Neville Sinclair as well as the 1992 four episode British series Framed which earned him The Golden FIPA for TV Series and Serials: Actor category the Biarritz International Festival of Audiovisual Programming.
While The Property of a Lady never saw the light of day, some things were recycled and used for Goldeneye. The main villain in both films was a long time ally of Bond only it was changed from mentor Denholm Crisp to good friend Alec Trevalyan mostly after Pierce Brosnan was cast. The Bond girl was supposed to use her speciality to help Bond only this was changed from jewel smuggler Connie Webb to computer programmer Natalya Simonova. Sir Henry Lee Ching was changed to General Arkady Grigorovich Ourumov. Both movies were supposed to take place in facilities only it in The Property of a Lady, it was supposed to be in Scotland while it was changed to Russia in Goldeneye. The Aston Martin DB5 was supposed to return for The Property of a Lady but it's used was changed from Bond's mission car that he would use one last time to being his casual car in Goldeneye.
End of Lawsuit, Bond 17 Resumes, and Departure (1992-1994)
By December 1992, after two years of legal issues, Danjaq and MGM/UA finally settled and the legal issues ended with both sides seemingly happy they could resolve their problems and were hopeful to move forward with restarting Bond 17 and the series. However, there still remained some problems between the two sides mostly when it came to Dalton's future. Dalton's contract expired in 1992 and MGM/UA reportedly wanted Dalton fired and replaced as they thought he wasn't catching on as Bond while EON Productions wanted Dalton for at least one more movie since he originally signed for three. By May 1993, new management took over MGM/UA and relations improved between the two parties. Because of this, Bond 17 returned to production with screenwriter Michael France being hired to write a new script though he did borrow some ideas from The Property of a Lady. France was just coming off writing the 1993 hit movie Cliffhanger starring Sylvester Stallone while later writing Hulk, The Punisher, and the 2005 Fantastic Four while doing some work on The World Is Not Enough. EON also hired screenwriter Richard Smith to come up with new Bond stories for future movies with EON later explaining they needed ideas ready whenever MGM/UA called and wanted another Bond movie. By August 1993, things appeared to be moving along nicely as France turned in a second draft. As for Dalton, he began negotiating on renewing his contract. According to an EON spokesperson, Dalton was still considered "The Bond on record" and that EON remained hopeful he would resign. Dalton also gave the impression he was still on board and was under the impression that filming would begin sometime in January or February 1994. However, both months came and went with not only filming not having begun but the script still wasn't finished. While filming the TV miniseries Scarlett, Dalton read France's screenplay and wasn't high on it. With Bond 17 seemingly never happening, not happy with the screenplay and wanting to move on, Dalton had enough. On April 12, 1994, Timothy Dalton made the announcement that he would not return as James Bond. With that announcement, Dalton officially exited the series after eight years but only two films which, as of 2017, puts him second to George Lazenby for fewest James Bond movies. In 2007, more than a decade after his departure, Dalton would state the obvious in that the biggest reason behind his departure was that he didn't want to do it anymore after waiting years to do a third film.
In the end, a lot of things can be blamed on Dalton's run not being more successful. The big reason is Dalton only got to do two movies. It's been proven that it's almost impossible for a Bond actor to really make the role their own with one or two movies. Youtuber Haphazard Stuff put it best where there is a rule of three with Bond movies as, with the exception of Pierce Brosnan, the third Bond is usually the one that establishes someone as James Bond and are usually some of the best in there series. Connery had Goldfinger, Moore had The Spy Who Loved Me, and Craig had Skyfall. Brosnan is the only one who was better off with two Bonds and his run started with his best in Goldeneye while his third film The World Is Not Enough came off as the beginning of the end for him. As for the others, none of the them would've had the same fame or praise that they enjoy. Connery's first two films were Dr. No and From Russia With Love which were excellent but Goldfinger is what brought the series to the next level. If Connery left after two films, he would've been remembered the guy who left right before the franchise exploded and went mainstream. Moore is considered the most popular Bond especially by casual fans but if he did only two then he would've been forgettable as Live and Let Die is a good start but probably not one of Moore's best while The Man With The Golden Gun is considered one of the weakest Bonds. It wasn't until Moore did The Spy Who Loved Me that he became established in the role and fans began to accept him as Bond. Craig had a hot start with Casino Royale but Quantum of Solace was a weak follow up. If Craig left after that then he would've been remembered as a guy who came in hot, faded fast, and left. Also, Connery and Moore each did seven Bond films while they along with Brosnan and Craig were around long enough to the point where a generation of Bond fans grew up with them as Bond and likely began following the series with them. Dalton only had two films and while he officially was James Bond for eight years, the last four was basically him twiddling his thumbs while the two parties engaged in a legal pissing contest and then had to wait for an eternity for a new script to be finished before he didn't want to wait anymore. Had the legal problems never happened, Dalton would've likely done three or four films and possibly could've won fans over as he could've eventually been accepted as Bond.
Dalton also had two big shadows over him. Regardless of who replaced Roger Moore, they were in for an uphill battle as Moore had such a long and successful run and a generation of Bond fans grew up with him. Dalton had a tough task before beginning as he was trying to be successful and put his own spin on Bond while fans were accustomed to Moore for so long and his interpretation. Even worse is Dalton was also somewhat in the shadow of Pierce Brosnan as fans wanted him as James Bond and were disappointed when he didn't get it. Again, it wasn't so much Dalton as it was the fact that fans had yearned for Brosnan to be Bond for a long time that regardless of who was chosen, fans would be disappointed if it was not Brosnan. It also probably didn't help that during Dalton's Bond run, Brosnan began doing commercials and advertisements portraying himself in a James Bond-like persona including a 1987 Super Bowl commercial for Diet Coke and for Lark Cigarettes in Japan (Dalton and Moore previously promoted Lark). Doing that probably only fueled the fire that Brosnan was the one and he was right there. So Dalton was in a weird and extremely rare position of not only being in the shadow of his predecessor but also his eventual successor.
Another issue that Dalton or the filmmakers probably didn't think of was Dalton's approach to the role. While trying to copy Moore wouldn't be the way to go and Dalton had the right idea, it can be argued that maybe Dalton went too far and was as 180 as it got. Dalton became Bond right around the time home video was getting popular so not many people saw Connery or Lazenby's movies or hadn't seen them in years. Meanwhile, many fans only knew Bond with the Moore films and we used to over the top moments, a lot of gadgets, and light hearted humor. Dalton's films were the exact opposite as the gadgets were kept to a minimum and there was little to no humor including the famous one liners. Again going back to Haphazard Stuff, the James Bond films run the same cycle of the movies getting more over the top and silly with more and more gadgets used that finally a movie comes around that's way too over the top (You Only Live Twice, Moonraker, and Die Another Day) that the next movie is a "back to basics" film with less gadgets and over the top silliness with Bond relying more on his skills instead of Q Branch's toys that are supplied to him (On Her Majesty's Secret Service, For Your Eyes Only, and Casino Royale). However, the Dalton films were the exact opposite as they got more dark, more serious, and more violent that when Goldeneye eventually began, they had to lighten things up by actually adding gadgets and quirky one liners to make the films more fun again. Even before Goldeneye, from what we know of The Property of a Lady, there were plans for more gadgets and over the top situations including having a Bond henchmen named Rodin who was armed to the teeth with high tech weaponry and gadgets that could supposedly make Q jealous while having a motorcycle helmet that has heads up display, heat sensory, and night vision to name some. The cars in the movie would include a stealth car and a motorcycle with rocket launchers. There were apparently even plans to include a female robot assassin. Dalton had the right idea but probably went a little overboard or probably should've done it little by little. It was largely the same situation Tim Burton and Michael Keaton were dealing with at the same time with the Batman movies. The movies were supposed to be dark and more closer to the comics but a lot of the general audience probably weren't familiar with the Batman comics but only knew Batman via the campy 60s TV Show and the Hanna Barbara Super Friends cartoons so when they saw Batman and Batman Returns, a lot of them probably didn't "get it" and that along with Batman Returns being very dark lead to Warner Bros. lighten up the series in an attempt to attract a family audience and it wouldn't be until the disaster known as Batman & Robin came out that people were more welcome to a more dark and gritty Batman like the Christopher Nolan trilogy. The James Bond series was similar as fans seemed welcome to the gadgets and one liners in the Brosnan movies until Die Another Day which was beyond ridiculous and probably was a big reason fans welcome Craig's serious portrayal more.
Finally, there's the fact that things were likely very stale behind the scenes. By the time Dalton took over in 1986, Eon released fourteen Bond movies. Screenwriter Richard Maibaum wrote or co-wrote eleven at that point. John Glen directed the last three Bond movies and edited three others. Maurice Binder did the opening title sequence for twelve Bond movies. John Barry composed ten Bond movies while also arranging the James Bond theme for Dr. No. Maibaum, Binder, and Barry had been been with the series on and off since it began 24 years earlier while Albert R. "Cubby" Broccoli was one of, if not, the man in charge throughout the whole thing. It also didn't help that none of these men were getting any younger. While Glen and Barry were only in their 50s, Binder turned 70 years old in 1988 while Maibaum and Broccoli turned 80 in 1989. While all of them did great jobs with the Bond movies Dalton did, it can also be argued that a change was needed. Even if people continue to do a great job, you still need to cycle through people every now and then while giving people a break or you risk everything getting stale. This is especially true with movies as you need fresh faces and fresh ideas after awhile or you come off like the times have passed you by. Broccoli seemed to know this as he questioned his leadership following Licence To Kill and while he & his family continued to run the series, he did know he still needed to clean house by the early 90s which is why he parted ways with Maibaum and Glen while bringing in and searching for new writers and directors. If the legal problems never happened, Dalton would've gotten the opportunity to work with new writers and directors that could've been the thing he needed especially with his vision of the character and the fact the series along with the rest of the world moving into the 21st Century.
Aftermath (1994-Present)
Just two months after Dalton's departure on June 7, 1994, in an announcement eight years in the making, it was announced that Pierce Brosnan would become the fifth official James Bond. The announcement was met with almost universal acclaim as fans both casual and hardcore as well as the media had long believed Brosnan was born for the role and now he would finally play it. It almost felt like Dalton was a mere memory. Following Brosnan's signing, Bond 17 would hit another snag as France's screenplay was deemed too similar to the recently released film True Lies so more writers were brought in to polish it up. After the script was finished and Martin Campbell was hired to direct, Bond 17 finally began filming on January 16, 1995. The movie, which later was named "Goldeneye" (as a tribute to Ian Fleming who named his Jamaican estate Goldeneye), was finally released on November 17, 1995, six long years after Licence To Kill. The movie would prove to be an enormous success as it achieved tons of positive reviews while grossing $350 million dollars worldwide, breaking Moonraker's 16 year record. The film's success along with Brosnan's portrayal has been credited for revitalizing The James Bond Series especially when it's future was called into question with the long lay off and the end of The Cold War which many thought made Bond look outdated.
Following Goldeneye, Brosnan would go on and do three more Bond films including 1997's Tomorrow Never Dies, 1999's The World Is Not Enough, and 2002's Die Another Day until Daniel Craig took over as the sixth Bond where he's done four movies as of writing in 2006's Casino Royale, 2008's Quantum of Solace, 2012's Skyfall, and 2015's Spectre. The James Bond series continues to be one of the most successful franchises in movie history though it lost it's position as #1 and is now #4 behind only The Marvel Cinematic Universe, JK Rowling's Wizarding World, and Star Wars while Skyfall became the first Bond film to gross $1 billion dollars worldwide.
As for Dalton, a lot has happened both personally and professionally since his departure from the James Bond franchise. Personally, Dalton broke up with Vanessa Redgrave by 1994 and eventually had an eight year relationship with Russian singer-songwriter Oksana Gregorieva (best known for her later tumultuous relationship with Mel Gibson) from 1995-2003 with the two having a son named Alexander in 1997.
Dalton's career has continued with Dalton remaining busy and doing a variety of projects. He played Rhett Butler in the 1994 mini series Scarlett, Julius Caesar in 1999's Cleopatra, a James Bond parody named Damien Drake in 2003's Looney Tunes Back in Action, villain Simon Skinner in 2007's Hot Fuzz, Mr. Pricklepants in 2010's Toy Story 3 as well as it's TV and movie shorts, and from 2014-2016 starred on the television show Penny Dreadful with former Bond girl Eva Green (Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale) & Rory Kinnear (Bill Tanner in Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, and Spectre) with the show being executive produced by Sam Mendes (director of Skyfall and Spectre). He's also made guest appearances on Television shows such as Doctor Who and Chuck. He won a TV Guide Award in 2011 for Best Villain for his appearances in Chuck and was twice nominated in the Behind The Voice Actors Award for Best Vocal Ensemble In A TV Special/Direct-to-DVD title or Theatrical Short in 2013 for Secret of the Wings and 2014 for Toy Story of Terror. Dalton has also returned to the theater as he did a stage reading of Peter & The Wolf in 1994, Star Crossed Lovers in 1998, and His Dark Materials from 2003-2004. He has also continued to remain on good terms with The Broccoli Family and was close enough to the point where he even served as one of the pallbearers at Albert R. "Cubby" Broccoli's funeral upon Broccoli's passing in 1996.
In the 30 years since The Living Daylights, Dalton's time as Bond has become more appreciated by older fans having gone back to his movies as well as new fans who have discovered his work in the 23 years since his departure. The Living Daylights is considered a Bond classic by fans while Licence To Kill is usually high on many Bond fans list of best Bond films and the general consensus is that it's one of the best in the James Bond series. Many fans would also agree that Dalton accomplished what he set out to do as fans of the movies and novels believe he's come the closest to portraying Bond on film the way Ian Fleming envisioned the character in his novels. Dalton has also enjoyed redemption with the casting of Daniel Craig in 2005 as Craig has played Bond very similar to the way Dalton did to the point where he's been favorably compared to Craig and can be considered a trendsetter as it can be argued that he was Daniel Craig before that was cool. The fact that Craig and the series have enjoyed critical and commercial success proves that Dalton was on to something and was just ahead of his time or in the wrong period. It's also long been rumored that Dalton was high on Cubby Broccoli's list of ideal Bond actors while Eoghan Lyng, writer for the James Bond Dossier, said that despite chronological placement, it was Dalton and not Brosnan who proved to be the prototype of the 21st century Bond.
While Timothy Dalton's time as James Bond was far too brief and he'll never get the same amount of praise as Sean Connery or Roger Moore have, nobody can deny his story is a fascinating one and his James Bond run while short was also sweet as he left his mark and in a way set the stage of what the world's most famous secret agent would be at the dawn of the 21st century all the while showing admiration and utter respect to the series origins and the vision of it's creator. While Dalton will never likely win any "Greatest James Bond of All Time" polls, he probably deserves "Most Underrated".
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