Rosamund Pike, the Academy Award nominee who hasstarred in films likeGone Girl,Saltburnand TV shows likeState of the Union, recalls a very uncomfortable situation she had to go through when auditioning for a part in theJames BondmovieDie Another Day. During the audition, Pike was asked to strip, but stood her ground and refused to do it unless they guaranteed that the part was hers. Ultimately, she was cast as a Bond girl, but she strongly recalls the distressing audition for what became her Hollywood breakthrough.
Speaking toHarper’s Bazaar UKabout her career, Pike described her experience when landing a role in theactionfranchise about the international spy. “I’d never been to America until I went with Bond. Doing the press tour was mind-blowing, a magic-carpet ride,” the actor said. However, she also offers some details about the James Bond audition, a shocking introduction to the grinding machine that is the entertainment industry:
“In the Bond audition, I was asked to unzip and drop the dress I was wearing, to just stand there in underwear. And I thought, ‘Well, no, I’ll be doing that if I get the part. I won’t be doing that now.’ I don’t know what possessed me.”
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Despite what she describes as an “uncomfortable” audition, Pike got the part inDie Another Day. At 21 years old, she had her Hollywood debut oppositeJames Bond himself, Pierce Brosnan. In the film, she plays Miranda Frost, an undercover MI6 agent who betrays the good guys, but is ultimately defeated by Jinx Johnson, the Bond girl played by Halle Berry.
Pike’s role in the James Bond movie was good enough to shoot her into stardom rather quickly. Her secondary roles inPride & Prejudice,An EducationandJack Reacherare among the most notable ones, but it was her rendition of Amy Dunne inGone Girlthat earned her a nomination at the Academy Awards. Her Emmy award-winning role in the miniseriesState of the Unionwas riveting. More recently, she delivered a great performance as a snobby but caring mother inSaltburn.
Another Bond Girl Recently Addressed the New Era of ‘James Bond’
Halle Berry attended the Cannes Film Festival, and during a jury press conference, the actor answered a few questions about the Bond franchise. There hasn’t been any more news about the franchise’s new direction under its new leadership, or who will play Bond from now on. However, Berry has joined the discourse by offering heropinion on casting, and whether or not Bond should be a female agent in the new era. She also weighed in on a possible Jinx spin-off:
“I don’t know if 007 should be a woman. In 2025, it’s nice to say, ‘Oh, she should be a woman.’ But I don’t really know if I think that’s the right thing to do.
“I doubt there will be a Jinx spin-off. There was a time that that could have happened. Probably should have happened. I would have loved for that to happen. But I think that time has passed.”
Source:Harper’s Bazaar UK
Die Another Day
