20 Things You Didn't Know About A View To A Kill (1985)
2. The Hoped-For MTV Villains
A View to a Kill was originally intended to be a Bond film for the MTV generation.
Even though it was filmed on a tight budget, the filmmakers had hoped to hire pop sensations to portray Max Zorin and May Day. They secured Grace Jones to play Zorin’s murderous girlfriend, but casting the madman himself proved difficult.
The part of Zorin was originally written for David Bowie and early marketing for the film confirmed his casting. However, Bowie backed out as “I didn’t want to spend five months watching my stunt double fall off cliffs” and he told the producers precisely what he thought of the script. The role was then offered to Sting, but he also declined.
Professional actors were then considered, including Rutger Hauer. Christopher Walken was finally cast, proving more than satisfactory as the psychotic Nazi experiment. Walken also later accepted the role of Max Shreck in Batman Returns (1992) after Bowie had turned it down.