Halle Berry, Michelle Yeoh and Carey Lowell look back with fondness and pride on their 007 roles
'It's movie history, and to be a part of that is amazing,' says 'Die Another Day's' Berry
By Ethan Sacks AND Marshall Fine / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Sunday, October 28, 2012, 6:00 AM
Updated: Sunday, October 28, 2012, 6:00 AM
Action star Michelle Yeoh is in her element in 1997's 'Tomorrow Never Dies,' with Pierce Brosnan as James Bond.
Halle Berry in 2002's 'Die Another Day'
United Artists/Everett Collection
Carey Lowell of 1989's 'Licence to Kill'
They loved working with the spy who loved them.
As past Bond girls Halle Berry, Michelle Yeoh and Carey Lowell reminisced to the Daily News about their 007 duties, one thing was clear: Each considered it a highlight, in one way or another.
“It was something I can honestly tell you I’m proud I was a part of,” Berry says about her memorable turn as Jinx Johnson in 2002’s “Die Another Day.”
“It’s movie history, and to be a part of that [is] amazing.
“That franchise lives on and on, so there’s something they’re doing right.”
One of the things they did right was introduce Jinx — who comes out of the ocean in a bikini, with a knife strapped to her waist — in an homage to Ursula Andress’ introduction in 1962’s “Dr. No.”
While being a Bond girl doesn’t trump her Best Actress Oscar, Berry, 46, does say she feels blessed to be part of a pantheon that includes some of the most beautiful actresses that have worked in movies.
“I’m in pretty good company,” Berry says. “It’s definitely something that I’m really proud of.”
Carey Lowell also finds her turn in a Bond film a thing of pride. Lowell was a 27-year-old model with a handful of small acting roles to her credit when she auditioned to play Pam Bouvier, an ex-CIA agent and pilot who teams up with Bond (Timothy Dalton, in his second and final appearance as 007) in 1989’s “Licence to Kill.”
“I didn’t fall into the category of the ‘classic Bond girl,’” Lowell, 51, says. “I had short hair — and no Bond girl before me ever had. They put me in a wig at the beginning of the film and then had my character cut her hair to pretend to be someone else. That was to explain why my hair was short.
“I think the Bond movies were going through a transition then,” Lowell continues. “But it was still a Bond movie. I was really flattered to be chosen.
“Hey, once a Bond girl, always a Bond girl. It will always be a big deal — it’s an exclusive club.”
That club got an esteemed member when martial arts-movie superstar Michelle Yeoh came aboard for 1997’s “Tomorrow Never Dies.”
In the course of the franchise, there had never been a Bond girl quite like Yeoh’s Wai Lin, who served notice that she was more than a match for 007 when she’s introduced scaling the wall of a villain’s base using only a wire.
“As that was my first English-language film, it was important to me to play an action hero — and not just be a notch on Bond’s bedpost,” Yeoh, 49, says.
Fifteen years later, she still has fond memories of working with the Bond team and especially Pierce Brosnan, in his sophomore 007 film.
“Remembering how I fought for control of a [moving] motorbike with Pierce always makes me smile,” Yeoh says.
esacks@nydailynews.com
As past Bond girls Halle Berry, Michelle Yeoh and Carey Lowell reminisced to the Daily News about their 007 duties, one thing was clear: Each considered it a highlight, in one way or another.
“It was something I can honestly tell you I’m proud I was a part of,” Berry says about her memorable turn as Jinx Johnson in 2002’s “Die Another Day.”
“It’s movie history, and to be a part of that [is] amazing.
“That franchise lives on and on, so there’s something they’re doing right.”
One of the things they did right was introduce Jinx — who comes out of the ocean in a bikini, with a knife strapped to her waist — in an homage to Ursula Andress’ introduction in 1962’s “Dr. No.”
While being a Bond girl doesn’t trump her Best Actress Oscar, Berry, 46, does say she feels blessed to be part of a pantheon that includes some of the most beautiful actresses that have worked in movies.
“I’m in pretty good company,” Berry says. “It’s definitely something that I’m really proud of.”
Carey Lowell also finds her turn in a Bond film a thing of pride. Lowell was a 27-year-old model with a handful of small acting roles to her credit when she auditioned to play Pam Bouvier, an ex-CIA agent and pilot who teams up with Bond (Timothy Dalton, in his second and final appearance as 007) in 1989’s “Licence to Kill.”
“I didn’t fall into the category of the ‘classic Bond girl,’” Lowell, 51, says. “I had short hair — and no Bond girl before me ever had. They put me in a wig at the beginning of the film and then had my character cut her hair to pretend to be someone else. That was to explain why my hair was short.
“I think the Bond movies were going through a transition then,” Lowell continues. “But it was still a Bond movie. I was really flattered to be chosen.
“Hey, once a Bond girl, always a Bond girl. It will always be a big deal — it’s an exclusive club.”
That club got an esteemed member when martial arts-movie superstar Michelle Yeoh came aboard for 1997’s “Tomorrow Never Dies.”
In the course of the franchise, there had never been a Bond girl quite like Yeoh’s Wai Lin, who served notice that she was more than a match for 007 when she’s introduced scaling the wall of a villain’s base using only a wire.
“As that was my first English-language film, it was important to me to play an action hero — and not just be a notch on Bond’s bedpost,” Yeoh, 49, says.
Fifteen years later, she still has fond memories of working with the Bond team and especially Pierce Brosnan, in his sophomore 007 film.
“Remembering how I fought for control of a [moving] motorbike with Pierce always makes me smile,” Yeoh says.
esacks@nydailynews.com
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/bond-girls-back-fondness-pride-article-1.1192972#ixzz2AihxyNPJ
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