While his breakthrough film Chopper was a slow-burn success, it did bring Hollywood’s focus to Aussie star Eric Bana, who went on to join forces with several major auteurs in the following years. From leading Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down and later headlining Ang Lee’s Hulk, the actor soon cemented himself as a prominent force in the realm of showbiz.
Moreover, the actor has also been in the forefront when it comes to Bond fan castings and per reports, he was also one of the major frontrunners to replace Pierce Brosnan. Although there’s no way of knowing if these reports were true or not, even if he was offered the iconic gig, it’s pretty evident that the actor would’ve passed on it.
Eric Bana Detailed Why He Was Always Against Playing James Bond
Although getting the gig of 007 is a dream come true for most actors, Eric Bana was never enticed by it, despite bearing the charisma and appearance to nail 007. Expanding on his reasoning, the Troy star stressed his uneasiness with fame was the major factor why he never wanted the gig in the first place.
He told the Independent:
I wouldn’t have wanted to be James Bond. It would have been too much fame for my head… I’m largely able to do whatever the hell I want, whenever I want. It would have been a great loss.
Moreover, the actor, who initially excelled at comedy back in his hometown, was happy with his life pre-Hollywood and would’ve been happy to continue leading that life had his Hollywood goals failed.
I knew if it didn’t work out, it was back to doing whatever I was doing, which I was happy with.
Although the actor himself was never enthralled by the idea of headlining one of the most iconic franchises in film history, he did help convince one of the best Bond actors to take the gig.
Eric Bana and Steven Spielberg Pushed Daniel Craig To Play James Bond
It’s largely known that Daniel Craig was initially against committing to the Bond IP, even though his role in Munich made him the perfect fit for the part in the eyes of Martin Campbell. However, his Munich costar Eric Bana and director Steven Spielberg, who has been a major James Bond fan for decades, pushed the Casino Royale star to give this a shot.
Recounting how the actor was offered the gig on the set of Munich, Bana recalled (via Vanity Fair):
Steven and I were getting in his ear like, ‘Dude, you have to play James Bond. There’s a scene in Munich where Daniel and I are storming a private villa in the middle of the night. It was right at the point where Daniel had to make a decision about whether he was gonna play Bond or not… Steven got a Bluetooth speaker out and on ‘Action!’ he played the Bond theme during the take.
We climb the fence to the James Bond theme, came through the bushes, and were running down the road whilst the music was playing. Then [Steven] yelled ‘Cut!’ and Daniel was like, ‘You b-stard! What are you doing?!’ It was so much. It was a good challenge trying to keep a straight face.
Eventually, Spielberg’s advice, “If the script’s right and if the deal’s right, do the job” pushed Craig to give it a shot. Even though Craig wanted to dislike the script, the actor recalled being genuinely impressed by the material, which was a departure from past Bond flicks, and the rest is history.
Casino Royale is available to stream on Paramount Plus.
Munich is available to stream on Netflix.
