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The failed actor convinced they’d be cast as James Bond in 1972: “I didn’t receive a reply!”
An aspiring actor named Guy Peters has recalled how he genuinely believed he was in contention to play James Bond in 1972, after auditioning with producer Cubby Broccoli and director Guy Hamilton. Following George Lazenby's disastrous single outing as 007, Eon Productions cast a wide net for a permanent successor, with Roger Moore seen internally as the favourite despite concerns he was already too famous from The Saint and The Persuaders!. Peters, a relative unknown who had performed under the stage name Peter Laughton, seemed to fit the profile the producers wanted, making the episode a curious footnote in Bond casting history.
Peters met Broccoli and Hamilton at Eon's Mayfair headquarters on 1 May 1972, where Broccoli reportedly told him he might have been cast instead of Lazenby had they met earlier, and a casting agent later called to say the interview had gone well. However, Broccoli's own comment that "Moore was known as The Saint and couldn't be Bond" proved wrong, as Moore ultimately landed the role in Live and Let Die and stayed on for several films. Peters left acting to become a journalist, and years later wrote to Barbara Broccoli about a possible return as a franchise writer, but received no reply.
In short
- Guy Peters believed he nearly became James Bond in 1972.
- He auditioned with Cubby Broccoli before Roger Moore got the role.
- His later pitch to write for Bond went unanswered by Barbara Broccoli.
Explained simply
James Bond is a fictional British secret agent whose films are made by Eon Productions. In the early 1970s, the producers were looking for a new actor after George Lazenby played Bond once in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
The main figures in the casting search included producer Cubby Broccoli and director Guy Hamilton. Roger Moore was best known then for television roles in The Saint and The Persuaders!, while Guy Peters, who had acted as Peter Laughton, was a lesser-known candidate.
The choice mattered because Bond was the central role in a continuing film series, and the producers needed an actor who could carry it into future films. Moore went on to play Bond in several films, while Peters later left acting and became a journalist.
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