Casting Call: Ian Fleming: The Man Behind James Bond
Helena Bonham Carter found fame playing upper-class ingénues. Then she met Tim Burton and became known as a bit of a quirky oddball. We'd like Bonham Carter to combine the two and play Blanche Blackwood, Fleming's neighbor in Jamaica who, at 45, became his lover. Rumor has it that the character of Pussy Galore is based on Blackwood.
Photo by Peter Lindbergh, Interview, May 2012.
Fleming's older brother, Peter, was also a writer (he's generally known for his travel writing, but he did pen a novel or two). Like his brother, Peter also attended Eton and worked on "military deception" during WWII. We nominate Joseph Fiennes' real life older brother, Ralph Fiennes. A lazy choice, we know, but at least he's a good actor.
Photo by Brigitte Lacombe, Interview, November 1996.
We're going to focus our film on the '40s and '50s, as that is when the most exciting things happened to Ian Fleming: He served in the war, began writing Bond books, built his "Goldeneye" house in Jamaica, started having an affair with the twice-married society figure Mary Charteris, married Mary Charteris, began having an affair with another society beauty Blanche Blackwell, became besties with Noël Coward. Pretty cinematic stuff. Fleming was born in 1908, so during this time he would have been in his late 30s and 40s. We feel that there might be a bit of an unproar if we didn't cast a Brit, so we're going to go with Joseph Fiennes (pre-hair loss).
Photo by Steven Klein, Interview, February 1999.
Another of Fleming's Jamaican neighbors, and a very close friend, was playwright Noël Coward. Noël served as the witness during Fleming's marriage to Charteris. We suggest Jeremy Northam for the part of Noël.
Photo by Rankin, Interview, May 2000.
The Second Viscount Rothermere, Fleming's nemesis... or sort of. Rothermere divorced Charteris because of her ongoing relationship with Fleming (and potentially the fact that she became pregnant with Fleming's child, who died shortly after birth). Dougray Scott is used to playing aristocrats and/or villians—we'd like him to hop on board as our Viscount.
Time for some of Fleming's lovers! First up, Anne Charteris. Fleming and Charteris first took up while she was married to the 3rd Baron O'Neill. The affair was not a well-kept secret, when O'Neill died, the assumption was that Fleming and Charteris would wed. They did not. Instead, Anne married the Viscount Rothermere. Eventually Rothermere divorced Anne. Fleming and Anne wed in 1952 and had one son. We think British-born, Australian-raised actress Naomi Watts would make a lovely society beauty.
