(Credits: Far Out / Amazon MGM Studios)
Mon 2 February 2026 15:45, UK
More than a handful of female actors have spoken negatively of their experiences making a James Bond movie, but there aren’t many who were publicly dragged through the mud by Cubby Broccoli. Just one, in fact, and if there are any positives, it’s that the feeling was entirely mutual.
While the curse of the ‘Bond girl’ has claimed many victims, it hasn’t always been a death knell for a performer’s career. Sure, some have admitted that they wouldn’t have accepted the role with the benefit of hindsight, but plenty of others have thrived.
During his reign as the franchise’s steward, head honcho, and ultimate decision maker, which spanned from 1962’s opening instalment, Dr No, to 1989’s Licence to Kill, the last time he was credited as a producer and actively involved in one of the films, everything ran through the Eon Productions co-founder.
From the choice of leading man to the director, from the script to the set pieces, and from the bombshells to the glamorous locations, Broccoli had his fingers in every Bond-flavoured pie from conception to release. He’d have approved Carole Bouquet getting the nod to play Melina Havelock opposite Roger Moore’s creaking 007 in For Your Eyes Only, and it was a decision he came to regret.
She wasn’t one of the most memorable ‘Bond girls’, and she didn’t take second billing behind the iconic secret agent in one of the best Bond movies, but the fact that Broccoli was openly disparaging her work ethic and personality before the picture had even reached cinemas indicates that he wasn’t a big fan.
Usually, the promotional circuit for a high-profile blockbuster finds everyone involved singing the praises of their director, co-stars, and colleagues. However, in this instance, the ‘Bond girl’ was banned from the publicity circuit, with Broccoli’s publicist sharing an official statement that called her “unprofessional and troublesome while making the film,” claiming that “she even went to sleep on the set.”
To add insult to injury, Bouquet gave an interview while For Your Eyes Only was shooting, suggesting that Moore would be better suited to playing her father than her lover. She wasn’t wrong, though, since he was 53 when it hit cinemas, and she was a full 30 years his junior. Decades later, the experience wasn’t one she remembered particularly fondly.
“I’ve never been so bored on a film set,” Bouquet shared. “Back then, to play in a James Bond film, you had to be a pretty face, but not necessarily a good actress. It was horrible to act in that film with so many special effects.” On another occasion, she was asked what For Your Eyes Only and being a ‘Bond girl’ had done for her career in the short and long-term, and her answer said it all.
“Nothing,” she declared. “You do it once, but you would not do it again.” Broccoli clearly wasn’t her biggest supporter, but it’s not like she had any positive memories of her one-and-done association with the Bond series, either.
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