10 Roles Written For Actors That Didn't Play Them
9. Christopher Lee Was Meant To Be Dr. No
There was a lot of decisions to be made when United Artists was launching itself into Ian Fleming's James Bond novels. The first was where to start. Casino Royale, Fleming's first, had already been adapted as an episode of the 1954 live CBS show Climax! with Peter Lorre as Le Chiffre and Barry Nelson as not James, not Jim, but Jimmy Bond, an American CIA agent.
So MGM chose the sixth novel in the series for their jumping-start. Connery had landed the lead fairly easily, but to play the evil Dr. No, producers squabbled and eventually turned to the author himself for advice.
Fleming suggested that his step-cousin, Sir Christopher Lee, play the role, but his work at the time was more associated with Hammer's Dracula series. Fleming also thought of his friend Noel Coward, but the singer/songwriter's response was "No! No! No!" Ultimately, producers went with with Joseph Wiseman, who was made up extensively to correspond to the characters Chinese heritage.
Lee eventually did appear as Scaramanga in The Man With The Golden Gun, ten years after Fleming's death.