Casino Royale almost gave Britney Spears a chance to recreate her cameo from Austin Powers in Goldmember. Spears had a cameo in the 2002 film as a fictionalized version of herself having a dance-off with Austin Powers while performing her then-current single “Boys.” The scene ends with Spears revealing herself as a villainous femme bot and having her head explode due to Austin Power’s dance moves, followed by him cracking the one-liner, “Opps, I did it again, baby.”
After appearing in the comedic spoof of the James Bond franchise, Britney Spears met with the James Bond producers for a possible appearance in Casino Royale. It is unlikely that this meeting was more than just a courtesy, as a Britney Spears cameo in Casino Royale never came to fruition. However, if this cameo did happen, it would have made Britney Spears one of the few to make an appearance in both the Austin Powers and James Bond films, though it also might have halted the James Bond franchise’s attempts to become relevant depending on how it was handled.
How A Britney Spears Appearance Could’ve Changed Casino Royale
Casino Royale was an attempt to rebuild the franchise after the 20th James Bond film Die Another Day, coincidentally released only four months after Austin Powers in Goldmember, failed to meet expectations. Presumably, a cameo by Britney Spears would likely have been similar to the cameo made by Madonna in Die Another Day. If this cameo had come to pass, Casino Royale might have been more in line with the latter Pierce Brosnan films than the more serious tone of the Daniel Craig era.
James Bond Being More Like Austin Powers Wouldn’t Be A Bad Thing
In a prominent example of humorless gatekeeping, Austin Powers in Goldmember was infamously almost forced to remove its Goldfinger parody title after MGM took legal action. The lawsuit was eventually resolved, under the condition that the film played the trailer for Die Another Day beforehand (via USA Today). Ironically, Die Another Day could’ve been viewed as more of a parody of James Bond than the Austin Powers films ever were. Die Another Day was meant to celebrate the James Bond franchise’s 40th anniversary, but it also marked the point where the franchise felt the most out of touch, with its over-reliance on gadgets and shoddy digital effects.
If Britney Spears had made a cameo in Casino Royale, it might have been viewed as a continued desperate attempt for the series to remain relevant. Perhaps for the best, the Daniel Craig era went in a more serious direction instead of relying on a needless celebrity cameo. Casino Royale ended up being the fresh start the franchise needed, and it remains better as a result.
