20 Things You Didn’t Know About Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)

4. “Sorry About That. I, Uh, Tuned Out There For A Moment, Elliot.”

Tomorrow Never Dies
MGM/UA

Sir Anthony Hopkins had declined the role of Augustus Trevelyan in GoldenEye, but the Bond producers secured him to portray Elliot Carver in Tomorrow Never Dies.

However, Hopkins quit after three days as the screenplay was unfinished and new script pages were being produced on a daily basis (Pierce Brosnan later described the production as being like “pulling teeth”). Hopkins then joined The Mask of Zorro (1998), directed by Bond alumnus, Martin Campbell instead.

Hopkins’s fellow Welshman, Jonathan Pryce ultimately played Carver but, along with his onscreen wife, Teri Hatcher, insisted on significant changes being made to the role before accepting it.

Nevertheless, Pryce boosted the morale of the cast and crew on-set during the hectic filming schedule, in particular by entertaining them in-between takes whilst filming Carver's passionate speech about his 24-hour news channel on Stage B at Eon Studios.

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