Why One Potential Bond Girl Turned Down Octopussy Role

Legendary actor, Pam Grier, shares why she turned down a potential Bond Girl role in the Roger Moore-led 13th James Bond movie, Octopussy.

Pam Grier recently shared why she turned down a Bond Girl role in Octopussy. The actor began her career in the early 1970s starring in women-in-prison films before making a name for herself as the lead in several violent vigilante Blaxploitation films including Coffy, Foxy Brown, and Friday Foster. Although her career waned in the 1980s when the exploitation genres fell out of favor, Grier bounced back with the lead role in Quentin Tarantino’s hit crime drama, Jackie Brown.

Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Grier shared why she declined to star in the 1983 Roger Moore James Bond film, Octopussy, as a Bond Girl. The actor recalled being set up by her agent to meet the Broccoli family who controlled the James Bond franchise. At that point in her career, Grier had no desire to play the role of Bond Girl, a part that is generally one-note and in service to Bond. Instead, she wanted to take roles that were more focused on her character. Read what Grier said below:

My agents had me meet with the Broccoli family, and I’m going, ‘I’m not available.’ They looked at me and said, ‘Well, why are you here?’ I go, ‘I don’t know. My agent told me to come meet.’ But I just wanted to do really in-depth character pieces that weren’t predictable. I turned down everything.

I just felt to be a Bond girl would be: What am I going to do? Am I going to help rescue him? Is he rescuing me? A Bond girl is an afterthought, a CliffsNote, perhaps. I asked, ‘Am I challenging Bond? Am I out to kill him? Will I kill him before he kills me?’ They hadn’t thought of that. I gave them other ideas, which were much more profound and interesting than what they were doing.

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How Pam Grier Could Have Changed Octopussy

Throughout the long-running spy action franchise, James Bond is paired with women who either serve as his love interest or women who occasionally act as an adversary. The Bond Girl role has been criticized over the years as they are commonly considered sexist for perpetuating misogynist stereotypes. Grier’s comments indicate that the actor understood the stigma surrounding the role and wanted no part.

However, Grier could have brought a certain strength and charisma generally lacking in the typical Bond Girl of the era. It is unclear which character Grier would have been up for, but it is likely that she would have played the part of Magda, an assassin who seduces Bond but also works for the enemy. Grier’s work in her vigilante movies established the actor as one of the top women action stars in Hollywood at the time, setting her up perfectly for the James Bond role. Regardless, it is evident that Grier wanted to move past that phase of her career.

Despite Grier turning down the role in Octopussy, and a wealth of negative reviews, the movie went on to become a box-office hit. The movie managed to pull in over $180 million worldwide against its $27.5 million budget. Grier may have missed out on a significant payday, but she saved herself from being associated with one of the least-liked movies in the James Bond series.

Next: How No Time To Die Ended The “Bond Girl” Trope For Good

Source: EW