Check out two heroes from James Bond’s “Tomorrow Never Dies” who could have had their own solo movie.
Tonight, France 2 is broadcasting Tomorrow Never Dies by Roger Spottiswoode with Pierce Brosnan, Michelle Yeoh, Jonathan Pryce, Teri Hatcher and Judi Dench. But did you know that two characters from this film who almost got their own solo feature film?
1. Doctor Kaufman
MGM
“I introduce myself: Doctor Kaufman. And every time I shoot, I hit the bull’s eye”. A professor of criminal medicine, Kaufman also says he has “a little talent” in torture. Halfway through the film, he is shot in the head by 007 himself, who puts an end to the life of a ruthless assassin in cold blood. And yet! The character was to have a second life, still in the guise of actor Vincent Schiavelli.
In the book The Lost Adventures of James Bond, it is mentioned by author Mark Edlitz that the film’s distributor, United Artists, had at the time considered an adventure specifically dedicated to Professor Kaufman. Given his fate in the film, it would quite probably have been a question of a prequel!
One can imagine that a character who is both forensic, professional killer and torturer could have given a very violent and interesting film, plunging into the perverse psyche of the doctor, and what could push him to such a trajectory of life. This is now left to the imagination of the spectators.
2. Wai Lin
MGM
But the good Doctor Kaufman is not the only character for whom United Artists hesitated to produce a solo adventure. Wai Lin (played by Michelle Yeoh), the badass agent of the People’s Republic of China External Security Forces. Ferociously independent, she does not hesitate to get rid of James Bond to carry out her investigations as she sees fit.
She’s gimmicky, capable of both melee and ranged combat, and has something of a rivalry with 007. In short, she would have had the makings of her own movie and an entirely centered adventure. on its many abilities. Too bad the project never saw the light of day, because it was full of potential. “Her name is Lin. Wai Lin.”