Here’s why former 007 star Pierce Brosnan felt Spectre was neither “Bond nor Bourne” – and why he had a point. While it’s hard to imagine now, Brosnan’s final Bond outing Die Another Day was moderately well-received initially. The film was a financial success while word of mouth was broadly positive, despite critiques of its campy humor and overuse of CGI.
In the years that followed, the response to Die Another Day quickly turned cold and it’s now seen as arguably the worst Bond movie, period. Brosnan was expected to return for at least one last 007 adventure and was later shocked when he received a call from producers stating they’d be looking for a new actor for Casino Royale. This change of direction made sense, considering the Bond movie series was looking increasingly out of date in the early 2000s, especially with the emergence of more grounded spy thrillers like the Bourne movies or 24.
Brosnan has also given mixed notices to his own Bond films, stating the later outings tended to blur together and that he always hated the “corny” one-liners. The actor has had nothing but praise for his successor Daniel Craig, who played the role for five movies, closing out with 2021’s long-delayed No Time To Die. While Craig’s run received some of the franchise’s best reviews, the likes of Quantum Of Solace and Spectre met with mediocre reviews. The latter was considered a letdown coming off of Skyfall, with Brosnan – who wanted to remake On Her Majesty’s Secret Service – himself telling Uproxx (via Digital Spy) that the sequel left him disappointed.
Was Pierce Brosnan Right About Spectre’s “Weak” Story?
Brosnan stated of Spectre that “The story was kind of weak – it could have been condensed. It kind of went on too long.” He also nodded to an issue with the tone of the Craig era that fans of the earlier films have often hit upon. The actor said “[Spectre] is neither fish nor fowl” and was “… neither Bond nor Bourne.” The influence of the Bourne series on Craig’s run is no secret, with Casino Royale drawing influence from its rival’s style of action, cinematography and gritty tone.
While the original Bond films became so successful because of their sense of adventure, globe-hopping nature, light humor and use of gadgets, audience tastes changed over time. Comparing the Roger Moore era with Craig’s entries, for instance, almost makes them look like two completely different franchises. Whereas the Bond adventure were trendsetters when the series began, the Jason Bourne movie series came to define the style of spy thrillers in the 21st century, with even 007 falling in line. That’s likely what Brosnan was referencing in his comments because while Spectre has some humor, its self-serious tone and attempts to reframe the previous Craig movies as part of a larger story didn’t sit well.
Spectre wasn’t the escapist entertainment followers of Bond have come to expect, and Brosnan was also correct about the movie’s story. Putting aside Christoph Waltz’s complete lack of menace as Blofeld, making the latter character Bond’s foster brother and overarching villain was both nonsensical and kind of pointless. There’s a lack of intrigue to most of Spectre’s story, and even the action – aside from the opening in Mexico and the fight with Dave Bautista’s henchman Mr. Hinx – stand out either. Without being overtly harsh, Brosnan was correct in pointing out Spectre’s many faults.
