Bond 25 SPOILER news
Someone
Posts: 1,586MI6 Agent
MI6-hq.co.uk has posted details from a Bond 25 casting call sheet.
https://www.mi6-hq.com/sections/articles/bond-25-casting-call?id=04406
Don't look/scroll down and leave this topic thread if you don't want to know...
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https://www.mi6-hq.com/sections/articles/bond-25-casting-call?id=04406
Don't look/scroll down and leave this topic thread if you don't want to know...
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Male Leading Role
Playing age: 30’s - 60’s
Russian. (Also open to suggestions of actors from the Balkans or similar) Must speak fluent English.
Characteristics: Charismatic, Powerful, Innovative, Cosmopolitan, Bright, Cold and Vindictive.
Female Leading Role
Playing age: 30 - 45
Russian. (Also open to suggestions of actresses from the Balkans or similar) Must speak fluent English.
Very Striking. Strong Physical / fighting / stage combat skills required.
Characteristics: Intelligent, brave, fierce and charming. She's witty and skillful. A survivor.
Male Supporting Role
Playing age: 35 - 55
Maori.
Advanced physical / fighting / stage combat skills required.
Characteristics: Authoritative, cunning, ruthless & loyal.
Comments
I also wonder what type the Russians will play. Officials, oligarcs, inteligence officers, criminals or something else? I hope the plot doesn't revolver around the current political climate. They managed to to avoid that during the cold war and they should avoid it this time too.
I've previously speculated that Zeljko Ivanek, a Slovenian actor who is in 3 Billboards, or Czech actor Vladimir Kulich could be candidates for Blofeld. They'd be ethnically sufficient for the Russian man.
Yekaterina Rednikova is the right age, is Russian.
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0715104/?ref_=tt_cl_t2
And she co-starred in the film Archangel with Daniel Craig.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0426911/?ref_=nm_knf_t3
The Maori henchman also makes me wonder if New Zealand will be a location. If it is this will pretty much rule out Norway as a location this time since very few places look more like Norway or the other way round.
Someone, can you be kind enough to post photos and imdb profiles of the actors you suggested?
SMERSH was actually an organisation to find and stop German infiltration of the Soviet military during WWII. Fleming obviously made a fictitious version. I don't think they should bring SMERSH back as a part of the Russian state apparatus (or the "organs" as the intelligence services were often called), but it could work if the villain starts an organisation inspired by the real SMERSH from Stalin's time.
Pushkin in TLD: That was a Beria operation in Stalin's time. It was deactivated 20 years ago. (More like 40 at the time)
Don’t think there’s any chance one of the highest paid and well known actors in Hollywood right now would do a supporting role of what I’m assuming will be a henchman/bodyguard. Also he’s Samoan, not Maori — they’re both Polynesians, but different groupings.
I think this does mean New Zealand will be a location. It's about time Bond visited that part of the world.
SMERSH is such a part of Bond lore, though - I just don’t see the point in coming up with a similar organization but leave the name on the table. Connery mentions it in FRWL and it was danced around in TLD. Craig’s Bond has been ticking the boxes of all the old Bond tropes, I say as as a new Cold War seems to be emerging, let’s introduce it for future stories...
Zeljko Ivanek has played villains, FBI/CIA Agents and such in many films. He was born in Slovenia but moved to the USA when he was three so he's probably much more American than Slovenian. That being said, while I don't necessarily imagine him as Blofeld, I'm sure he could do a great job as an Eastern European / Slavic villain or even a CIA or FBI Agent in a Bond film. How about this: he could play a Russian Agent posing as an American (CIA or FBI?) or an American Agent infiltrating the Russians posing as a Russian/ Eastern European? He's another actor that could fit in a lot of different roles in a Bond film.
I’m hoping they don’t try to tick off boxes, and rather focus on making a great film. SMERSH was a an apparatus of the Russian government. I doubt they’d be that overtly political, especially in the current climate.
I hope this is the case, it’s an absolutely stunning part of the world! MI: Fallout filmed a scene or two in a very beautiful area of NZ and I would love to see more of the country in some big budget films.
With IMDB name search you can find a number of Russian born actors that fit that age profile of up to 60s and have made US movies recently. Vladimir Friedman is one. He was in 2017's American Assassin.
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0295393/
BTW Mark Strong fits that age profile... While Benedict Cumberbatch doesn't. LOL
https://www.mi6-hq.com/sections/articles/bond-24-report-20140822-henchman-casting
Photos are a bit complicated, I'm happy to post links to the IMDB profiles.
Vladimir Kulich
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0474520/
Zeljko Ivanek
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0411964/
I'm wondering if the Maori is actually an ally of Bond. How does a Maori get mixed up with the Russian renegade generals/FSB/mafia plots? Is the Maori character like Licence to Kill's Sharkey, or will the Maori character only appear in the pre-title action sequence?
I'm also wondering, does "leading" actually mean the main villain? Could this Russian guy be another Necros (The Living Daylights), though the age range being up to the 60s would probably preclude that.
Equally the Russian woman could be a disposable Bond girl, a "survivor" who is another Solange (Casino Royale) and ends up dead.
MI:Fallout did the right thing. They cast an international star who usually plays true blue heroes as the main villain. In a smaller villain role they cast Kristoffer Joner, an excellent actor who is a star in Norway but is largely unknown in other countries. .
These casting calls don't prove the rumours of an female American villan and a young British "understudy" Bond girl are wrong. But of course the rumors can be wrong.
I agree it's a partial view of the final cast. You could swop the Russian man and woman for Dimitrios and Solange in CR and you still have Le Chiffre and Mr White.
I could easily believe that Danny Boyle would like to put Bond in Australia or New Zealand for the PTS and have it unrelated to the main story, as has been the case for many of the Bond films.
The Neal Callow comments about Rachel Weisz being perfect for the Bond25 Bond-girl role also puts another spin on the cast mystery.
EON could mine enough henchmen and villains from SPARTCUS (STARZ Network) for the next five Bond films.
He could be good! IMDB profile link below.
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0071847/
Mads Mikkelsen’s brother...
Well his Grand Dad was in YOLT!! So maybe?
"Do you expect me to talk? "No Mister Bond I expect you to die"
https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/films/990171/James-Bond-25-Special-effects-supervisor-Chris-Corbould-Danny-Boyle-Daniel-Craig
I bloody hope so thats where I live, and i would happily show the cast and crew around!!
As for Maori actors, although there are a lot, there only 3 that spring to mind that well known around the world now, thats Julian Dennison (Deadpool 2, too young though), and Clif Curtis (Fear the Walking Dead, Once Were Warriors - not a broad man a-la Hinx or Odd-job, but could pull off a decent character) or Maniu Bennett as mentioned above.. Manu has the shape, but the kiwi's might get a bit precious as he's half aussie, and thats a bit insulting to them (Sorry JTM!)
FRWL had Colonel Rosa Klebb 'defecting' to SPECTRE. In TSWLM, Bond works with the Russians. In FYEO the Russians are simply customers to smugglers trying to sell ATAC. Goldeneye and TWINE had Russian mafia boss Zukovsky who wasn't an outright enemy of Bond. Goldeneye had a corrupt Russian general, so did Living Daylights and Octopussy. In TND, MI6 is working with the Russians in the PTS.
I think Russian characters also mean the locations are more likely to be Europe and specifically Eastern Europe, maybe North Africa/Turkey. If you think about the locations for FRWL (Turkey/Balkans/Italy), TSWLM (Mediterrenean/Egypt), FYEO (Greece, Italy, Albania), Octopussy (Germany), Living Daylights (Slovakia/Austria/Tangiers), Goldeneye (France/Russia), it would make sense.
I hope this doesn't mean a Royal angle to Bond25. Bond saving the fourth cousin to the Queen or something. It might go down well in the USA, but people would cringe in the UK. Bond meets The Crown?