"Goode. Right on schedule"

Downton Abbey star Matthew Goode has explained how he ruined his chances of being James Bond.

"I didn't audition. I went in and met Barbara [Broccoli]", the Brit said.

 

The actor told Babs that he wanted his version of 007 to be faithful to Ian Fleming's portrayal of the British secret agent in the original novels:

 

"I didn't get to the audition. But it was quite a funny one because — and she's gorgeous and just a lovely, lovely person — she was like, 'So what's your idea for Bond?'

"And I was like, 'My idea for Bond. We've gotta take it back to the books, you know? Really, we absolutely have to make this guy an alcoholic, a drug addict. He hates himself. He hates women. He hates a lot of people. He's in deep pain. He's brilliant at killing people'.

"I think by the end of the interview, she was like, 'Mhmm. Next'.

"I wanted to make it really dark, but what I should have said was, 'But also incredibly charming', he added.

Daniel Craig eventually took the role, of course. Matthew's idea might be mouth-watering for Bond fans, but at 47, he's likely missed the boat.

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