Brian Cox Has ‘Always Wanted to Play a Bond Villain’

Brian Cox mentioned he jumped on the probability to play the mysterious determine of the Controller in upcoming James Bond-themed gameshow “007: Highway to a Million.”

When requested why he joined the sequence, which sees actual individuals competing for a £1 million ($1.2 million) by collaborating in heart-stopping bodily challenges worthy of the fictional spy, Cox deadpanned: “They paid me an infinite sum of money. And that’s all the time very engaging.”

However the “Succession” star added that he has all the time needed to affix the 007 franchise and mentioned when the job supply first got here in he assumed it was to play the villain within the subsequent Bond function movie. “I believed ‘Oh, 007, lastly,’” he mentioned. “I ought to have realized that haven’t bought a brand new James Bond so why would they be casting a villain? However I believed: ‘This is perhaps my massive second to play a Bond villain.’ I’ve all the time needed to play a Bond villain.”

Longtime Bond producer Barbara Broccoli, who joined Cox on the black carpet on the premiere of “007: Highway to a Million” in London on Thursday night, mentioned Cox would even have made a superb spy. “He would have been an amazing Bond,” she mentioned. “He’s wonderful and audiences love him and he’s so nice within the present.”

The sequence, which was conceived and produced by Fremantle firm 72 Movies, is the primary time the Bond IP has ever been used outdoors of function movies. “We’re all the time very protecting of Bond,” Broccoli mentioned. “It wasn’t a lot concerning the time being proper [to do a TV show]. It was concerning the idea being proper. 72 Movies approached us, we cherished the idea and we thought we’d give it a go. And judging by the response, I believe we bought it proper.”

“007: Highway to a Million” sees Cox management the destiny of 9 pairs of wannabe Bonds as they take part in a spread of challenges utilizing helicopters, snakes, quick vehicles, scuba diving gear and even a tarantula. As soon as the contestants have accomplished the terrifying challenges set by Cox (which occur throughout a spread of areas from the Scottish Highlands to Jamaica) they have to appropriately reply a query to get by to the following spherical; one mistaken transfer and their journey is over. “It’s fairly dramatic, truly, what they must undergo in there,” Cox mentioned.

On the black carpet Cox revealed his favourite Bonds have been Sean Connery and Roger Moore. “I all the time cherished Roger Moore as a result of Roger Moore was so witty,” mentioned Cox. “Bond bought much less witty as he went on and have become fairly severe. I used to be within the Bourne movies and I believe the Bourne movies could have had an impact on the Bond [films]. I’m undecided.”

The actor was additionally comfortable to speak about one other earlier function: his now iconic flip in “Succession” as foul-mouthed media mogul Logan Roy (at one level there have been peals of laughter on the purple carpet after a reporter satisfied Cox to shout “Shut the fuck up”), particularly for the reason that “007” launch befell simply hours after a Fox Corp quarterly earnings name revealed that Rupert Murdoch continues to be “very concerned” with the enterprise regardless of ostensibly stepping again in September.

“He won’t ever step down,” Cox mentioned. However he added his Logan Roy character was by no means truly based mostly on the Fox founder, regardless of what individuals have assumed. “I actually maintain telling individuals, it was nothing to do with Murdoch. Logan Roy and Murdoch are two completely completely different individuals. Murdoch inherited his wealth; Logan Roy is a self made man. That’s the massive distinction and subsequently there’s an entire completely different factor. It isn’t actually isn’t concerning the Murdoch household. [“Succession” creator] Jesse Armstrong I believe would attest to that.”

“I believe he bought caught by it however that was his downside,” Cox added. “Individuals over-identified. All people informed him ‘It’s based mostly on you Rupert’ and he went, ‘Oh, God, is it based mostly on me?’ Nicely, it wasn’t.”

A second season of “007: Highway to a Million,” which launches on Prime Video on Nov. 10, is already within the works, with Broccoli absolutely behind it. However the Eon Productions government added that followers shouldn’t anticipate to see 007 himself on the small display screen anytime quickly. When requested whether or not there are plans for extra Bond-inspired TV exhibits, she replied: “I don’t suppose so. I believe it’s the massive cinema display screen mainly. This has been quite a lot of enjoyable and we’d love this to proceed however I believe that’s most likely it.”

As for the following instalment of the Bond movie franchise, that will take somewhat longer now that Daniel Craig has formally hung up his tuxedo. “It’s gonna take some time for us to get — you understand, it’s an entire new reinvention,” Broccoli informed Selection. “So it’ll take a while.”