Ian Fleming's Ideal Actor for James Bond Played Him in a Parody

The James Bond franchise is one of the longest-running in film history and still continues to generate enthusiasm for its upcoming installments. While many recurring sagas fail to retain their creative spark after just a handful of sequels, the 007 series is still running strong after 27 films. The franchise has employed several talented actors in the role of Bond and has remained under the watchful eye of the Broccoli family and MGM productions. However, much of the series’ success can be traced back to the original novels by Ian Fleming, which are responsible for developing the core mythology of the 007 universe. Although the franchise got off to a promising start when Sean Connery was cast in Dr. No, Fleming had a very different actor in mind to play Bond: David Niven.