Burt Reynolds regrets not playing James Bond

20 August 2018

Burt Reynolds regrets not playing James Bond.

Burt Reynolds

The 82-year-old actor - who has roles in the upcoming 'The Last Movie Star' and Quentin Tarantino's 'Once Upon A Time In Hollywood' - admits he has regrets about not taking on iconic roles at the peak of his career and still thinks the public haven't seen his best work just yet.

Explaining how he rejected the role, he said: "An American can't play James Bond. I still haven't done the best work I can do and I'd like to do something people really wouldn't expect ... I don't think there's any actor who doesn't think he's made bad career choices. I was recently with my friend Clint Eastwood, who's had one of the most successful careers of all. We were laughing about the mistakes we made and he talked about a couple of films he wished he hadn't made. I have a lot more than that! You learn from it though - you learn to be a better actor."

Burt - who was being lined up to play the spy follow Sean Connery's exit - claims he also rejected the role of Han Solo in 'Star Wars' in 1963.

The 70s heartthrob had an illustrious film career before filing for bankruptcy in 1996 and quipped that he's not so different from his new character Vic, a washed up actor trying to redeem himself in his latest movie.

He told the Daily Mirror newspaper: "Well, I guess it wasn't too big a stretch for anyone to imagine me in the role. Adam [Rifkin] wrote it specially for me and did a real good job. I didn't just show up and be myself.

"Vic isn't me, even though we share some experiences. In fact playing him proved quite a stretch. I did things I haven't done in a long time, emotionally. I went to places I needed to go. When you've been driving fast cars and punching and shooting people all the time you don't get much of a chance to show vulnerability. I've never had a chance to show there is a soul there. But this movie gave me a chance to really do some soul searching and show some of the things actors go through.

"Some crash and burn and never get up again while others fight their way back and get working again. I don't think there's any actor who doesn't think he's made bad career choices."