Josh Brolin Almost Led the Iconic Franchise Fans Now Want Henry Cavill to Take Over — Years Before Cable and Thanos

Here is a fun what-if: the Marvel guy who snapped half the universe out of existence almost had a license to kill first. And yes, the Brolin/Bond story gets confusing fast, so let’s untangle it.

The Bond that almost was (and the Brolin mix-up)

Josh Brolin is known for playing Thanos in the MCU and Cable in Deadpool 2. But the family’s brush with 007 actually goes back to 1983’s Octopussy. Quick sanity check: Josh would’ve been 15. The near-miss belonged to his dad, James Brolin, who has talked about how close he got when the Bond producers briefly eyed a new lead before Roger Moore changed his mind and returned.

'[Roger Moore] was out, so I flew over and I met all the people. And I got my apartment and I started working with the stuntmen and Cubby Broccoli hired me. We hadn’t signed any papers yet. I got back to L.A. to get my stuff because I was going to be gone for a year. And I got a call saying Roger decided to do one more, and I was out.'

Brutal. If that stuck, the Brolin filmography would look very different. Instead, Josh eventually carved out his own path with Marvel and, on the spy side, a pitch-perfect young Agent K in Men in Black 3.

Would Josh Brolin jump into Bond now?

Short answer: if Denis Villeneuve calls, yes. Brolin told The Playlist he’d be there for Villeneuve in a heartbeat, which tracks given their Dune partnership and how much he likes working with him. There’s been chatter about Villeneuve and Bond; none of that is official, but Brolin’s position is clear.

'I didn’t even have to read Dune, even though I knew the story, to wanna do it with Denis; Denis is it for me. We have a very close relationship; he’s a stellar filmmaker. I like working with people I like and who are stellar filmmakers. So I have that with him, and I’m fortunate. So wherever Bond goes, it will go.'

Translation: if Villeneuve touches 007 in any capacity, do not be surprised if Brolin shows up somewhere in that world, even if it’s not as Bond himself.

Meanwhile: Henry Cavill keeps making his case

Henry Cavill checks a lot of boxes for Bond: the look, the charm, the chops. He’s already played variations on the theme — the smooth operator in The Man From U.N.C.L.E., a winking superspy in Argylle, and the real-life commando Gus March-Phillips in The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which sits close to the DNA that inspired Fleming. Also worth remembering: he reportedly came very close on Casino Royale before the role went to Daniel Craig. If he’s not the frontrunner right this second, he’s still absolutely in the conversation.

Octopussy refresher

• Director: John Glenn
• Major cast: Roger Moore, Maud Adams, Louis Jourdan, Kristina Wayborn, Kabir Bedi
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 41% critics | 47% audience
• Box office: $67.9 million
• Now available on Amazon Video (US)

Your turn

Who’s your top choice for the next James Bond? Drop your pick in the comments.