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John Cleese Slates Bond Films For Being ‘Humourless’

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He might have played Q, but it would appear that John Cleese holds no affection for the current state of the Bond film.


The Python has slated the Daniel Craig era for being both ‘humourless’, and for pandering to the Asian film market.

“I did two James Bond movies and then I believe that they decided that the tone they needed was that of the Bourne action movies, which are very gritty and humourless,” he told the Radio Times.

“Also, the big money was coming from Asia, from the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, where the audiences go to watch the action sequences, and that’s why in my opinion the action sequences go on for too long, and it’s a fundamental flaw.

“The audiences in Asia are not going for the subtle British humour or the class jokes.”

Most recently, ‘Skyfall’ featured a large section of action set in the Far East, notably in China.

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Cleese played the assistant to Desmond Llewelyn’s Q in ‘The World Is Not Enough’ in 1997, and was then promoted to the head of Q Branch in ‘Die Another Day’ in 2002, officially taking over from Llewelyn after 36 years in the job.

Past Bonds have, however, praised Daniel Craig’s take on Fleming’s MI6 man.

Sean Connery has described Craig as ‘fantastic, marvellous in the role’, while Roger Moore celebrated the action that appears to have left Cleese cold.

“I could never have been like Daniel, who has muscles on muscles on muscles,” he said in 2012.

“I think I was a little overweight because I’d been drinking too much champagne. Once you have led a louche life you are never in good condition. I’ve never had a washboard stomach, I just held it in scene by scene.

“There was no diet or fitness regime established by the actors who had played Bond before, or not that I know of. It was suggested it wouldn’t hurt if I lost a little weight, and they thought my hair was a bit poofy woofy.”

Sam Mendes is currently at work on ‘Bond 24’, thus far nameless, but with a release date of October 23, 2015.

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Photo: Sony