John Travolta’s Dream Bond Villain Role That Never Happened
John Travolta once shared his desire to play a James Bond villain, calling it his only exception to retiring from villainous roles. Despite talks with the franchise, the opportunity never came to life in later Bond films.
When you think of John Travolta, you might picture him as the charming lead, but his filmography tells a more complex story. While Danny Zuko from Grease and Vincent Vega from Pulp Fiction aren’t exactly model citizens, they’re still the main characters in their worlds. Travolta, though, has never shied away from playing the bad guy, especially during the late '90s and early 2000s. In that era, he seemed to relish villainous roles, from a rogue Air Force officer in Broken Arrow to a ruthless hacker in Swordfish, and even the over-the-top antagonist in Battlefield Earth. He was making enemies on screen at every turn.
Travolta’s Villain Era and a Unique Exception
In a conversation with The Telegraph, Travolta admitted he was ready to move on from playing villains, but he made one notable exception. The only role that could tempt him back to the dark side, he said, would be as a villain in the James Bond series.
“I would love that,”
he shared.
“They’re going a different way with their villain in this next film, but I’ve spoken to Barbara Broccoli about it, and she loves the idea, so that would be great.”
This interview took place in 2014, just before the release of Spectre, the 24th Bond film and Daniel Craig’s second-to-last outing as 007. Looking at the choices made for the film’s antagonists, it’s clear why Travolta wasn’t cast. Spectre brought back Bond’s iconic nemesis, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, a role that ultimately went to Christoph Waltz. With Blofeld’s Eastern European roots and genius-level intellect, Waltz was a natural fit. It’s tough to imagine Travolta as Max Denbigh, the sly MI6 double agent played by Andrew Scott, or as the imposing henchman Mr. Hinx, portrayed by Dave Bautista.
Missed Opportunities in Recent Bond Films
Fast forward to No Time to Die, where the main villain, Lyutsifer Safin, is a scarred bioterrorist with a mysterious past. Rami Malek took on the role under very specific conditions, and it’s hard to picture Travolta stepping into those shoes. Safin is a blank slate of a character, evil for evil’s sake, and fits the old Bond trope of the disfigured foreign adversary. Malek delivered a solid performance, but the character itself didn’t offer much for any actor to work with, even one as experienced in villainy as Travolta.
It’s difficult to see Travolta ever getting the chance to fulfill this particular dream. The Bond franchise remains one of the most enduring in movie history, and Travolta’s star power isn’t quite what it once was. Maybe two decades ago, he could have pulled it off, but for now, he’ll have to settle for imagining himself in the role or revisiting classic Bond games on his old console.