„It’s Pathetic.” Pierce Brosnan Wasn't Happy with How The Erotic Scenes in his James Bond Movies Looked
Although Pierce Brosnan appreciates the role of James Bond, he has several complaints about films with his participation. First and foremost concerning the erotic scenes.
Pierce Brosnan, one of the actors of the iconic James Bond, had a certain image of what the character and the films featuring him should look like, and was disappointed with the direction taken in the productions featuring him, as it conflicted with his ideas. The actor, of course, remembers his time as Agent 007 well and cherishes the role, but still believes that certain things in his movies could have been done better.
During an interview for The Telegraph, Brosnan explained that he believes the role has been sofened in his time.
I felt I was caught in a time warp between Roger and Sean. It was a very hard one to grasp the meaning of, for me. The violence was never real; the brute force of the man was never palpable. It was quite tame, and the characterization didn’t have a follow-through of reality; it was surface.
In addition to the violence that went wrong, Brosnan later in an interview with GQ also pointed out the erotic scenes, which he said were not as spicy as, for example, those in the 1970s Bond movies.
You’re not even allowed to show a bloody nipple. It’s pathetic. What Bond needs is a good, palpable killing sequence and a good sex scene – and it doesn’t have to be graphic; you can use your imagination. We had a good one in The Thomas Crown Affair: a really classy, sexy scene.
The actor evidently had a hard time with this issue, as he also returned to it during an interview with Playboy, where he stated that filmmakers had become prudish like in old Hollywood, when even kissing scenes could be awkward and people avoided showing them.
I remember doing a sex scene with Halle – I mean frolicking in the bed – and there was director Lee Tamahori right under the sheets with us like some mad Kiwi, saying, ‘All right, now, where are you going to put your hands? I said, ‘Is this how you’re going to shoot it?’ The way we ended up doing it was almost like the old days in Hollywood: kissing the girl but still having your feet on the floor.
So certain issues in his Bond films didn’t coincide with his own vision, but either way he played it as expected of him. Nevertheless, Brosnan remains unhappy with how violence and erotic scenes were shown in productions with him.
