Sam Worthington has worked in one of the most successful franchises in the history of cinema, Avatar. He is an incredibly talented actor and was well-recognized before this franchise, having starred in multiple projects in the 2000s like The Terminator film series, Clash of Titans, and Macbeth. Was another massive franchise almost part of his accomplishments?
Worthington revealed that he was very close to playing the character of James Bond in Casino Royale before Daniel Craig bagged the role.
Sam Worthington Was Almost Gonna Play James Bond In Casino Royale
Sam Worthington talked about auditioning for the role of James Bond in the 2006 movie, Casino Royale. The audition was taken with Martin Campell, who was the director of the movie. Worthington talked about this experience being a disaster for him, stating that he was unable to embody the character correctly. He stated that he was able to play the killer aspect of James Bond, but fell short in terms of his suave.
“I did go for Bond. I went and did the audition with Martin Campbell, who ended up directing Casino Royale. The suit didn’t fit, man.” He went on to talk about his English accent and what he thought his 007 would look like, “I tried to do a British accent. I did say to them I wanted to wear the white tuxedo like Roger Moore. I wanted to bring back kung fu chops, and they looked at me like I was crazy. It was awful…I sounded like Dick Van Dyke from Mary Poppins,”
The Australian actor also went on to joke about his British accent, comparing it to Dick Van Dyke’s famously poor accent in 1964’s Mary Poppins. He also went on to request certain specific physical traits he would like to see in his take on 007. This included him only wearing white tuxedos like Roger Moore’s version of Bond.
Sam Worthington Did Not Want To Play James Bond
Sam Worthington ultimately did not end up getting the part in Casino Royale, going instead to Daniel Craig. However, it all seems to have worked out as he later revealed that he was not all too interested in playing the character of 007. He mentioned in an interview that he was not a big fan of the idea of playing James Bond due to his own reservations.
“What intrigues me more is the chance to start my own franchise and put my own stamp on a character that is iconic rather than just jumping on something that is already established.” He added, “I like the risk of getting my own one going.”
He was not too keen on the idea of jumping on to an already famous, already established franchise with multiple iconic faces associated with it. He wants to, instead be part of something of his own with a character that is iconic because of him rather than being just another actor who plays James Bond. This wish seems to have come true for him as he is one of the protagonists of the record-breaking franchise, Avatar.
Source: Digital Spy
