Longtime producer of the franchise Barbara Broccoli says that the studio asked the producers to cut the scene that hinted at James Bond's gay experience and involved Javier Bardem's villain.
- September 9, 2021
AceShowbiz - James Bond's gay hint in "Skyfall" may be one of the most memorable scenes in the franchise history, but that almost didn't make the cut into the final movie. Producer Barbara Broccoli revealed that they were asked by the studio to remove the homoerotic scene.
In the 2012 movie, during a captor and captive scene between Daniel Craig's Bond and Javier Bardem's villain Silva, the latter caressed the former's immobilized body. "You're trying to remember your training now. What's the regulation to cover this? Well, first time for everything I guess," Silva said to Bond, who replied, "What makes you think this is my first time?"
In a new Apple TV+ documentary, "Being James Bond", Broccoli recalled the producers butted heads with studio's execs regarding the scene. "I remember we were told to cut that line by the studio and we said no, no, no," the producer said, "We resisted."
In the end, Broccoli said they made the right decision by keeping the scene. "That line, just the whole place rocked it then… I remember looking at the studio executive [and] going, 'See, told you,' " she said after watching the audience's reaction to the scene at the global premiere at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
Sam Mendes, who directed "Skyfall", acknowledged that the gay hint challenged Bond's decades-old screen representation as a womaniser. "I think there's a huge homoerotic undertow in a lot of Bond movies," he said.
Meanwhile, former Bond depicter Pierce Brosnan once said he's open to the idea of a gay 007, but he didn't think that Broccoli would allow it. "Sure. Why not?" the "Die Another Day" star said when asked whether he could picture a gay Bond. He added though, "Actually, I don't know how it would work. I don't think Barbara would allow a gay Bond to happen in her lifetime. But it would certainly make for interesting viewing."
Brosnan also supported a racially diverse casting of Bond. "Let's start with a great black actor being James Bond," he suggested.
The new installment of the Bond film franchise, "No Time to Die", will open in theaters on October 8.
