Nobody knows who will play James Bond in the brave, new world of Amazon 007 projects, but former 007 Pierce Brosnan has interestingly emerged as the internet’s favorite speculative front-runner. Everyone from Bond experts to those just nostalgic for the 90s seems to want Brosnan to return to the role for an older take on Bond. And, funnily enough, Brosnan just did something that really won’t help to silence the hype for his hypothetical return.
Over on the Aston Martin Instagram, the famous car manufacturer posted a reunion between Brosnan and one of his James Bond costars; the 2002 Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, which Brosnan drove in his Bond swansong, Die Another Day.
“Icons reunited,” the Instagram caption read. “Award-winning actor, Pierce Brosnan, and the legendary Vanquish from DIE ANOTHER DAY meet again after more than 20 years at Aston Martin’s Gaydon HQ.”
James Bond’s Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, Explained
In Die Another Die, Bond is given this specific Aston Martin by Q (John Cleese) who jokingly refers to the car as the “Vanish,” because of its ability to render itself invisible. Bond only drives the car in the second half of Die Another Day, but, the Vanquish appeared in two Bond video games; Nightfire in 2002 and Everything or Nothing in 2004. In Nightfire, the Vanquish had a submarine mode.
Although Brosnan’s Bond mostly drove new BMWs in his first three films, Die Another Day represented Bond’s return to driving new Aston Martins. Brosnan drove the famous 1965 Aston Martin DB5 in GoldenEye, but only at the beginning of the film. In the Daniel Craig era, Bond would drive the DB5 a lot, but like Brosnan, Craig also got a few new Aston Martins; the DBS V12 in Casino Royale and the DB10 in Spectre, and Timothy Dalton’s retro 1987 Aston Martin V8.
So, other than the classic DB5 made famous by Sean Connery, the Vanquish was Brosnan’s only other Aston Martin. And, now, this then-new car is technically retro.
Related: Pierce Brosnan’s Latest Photo Proves You Never Stop Being James Bond
Will Pierce Brosnan Play James Bond Again?
In a recent interview with GQ, Brosnan said that he’s “heard that” folks are clamoring for him to return to the role. His official response is: “Of course, how could I not be interested?”
But he’s also tempered that speculation with some cold hard facts. Things are changing in the James Bond camp, and he’s not sure that his venerable return as Bond would be right, or even, in the cards. Brosnan noted that it’s a “sensitive” time of transition and that he thinks that the role is “best left to another man.”
Could getting behind the wheel of his old Aston Martin have changed Brosnan’s mind? Only time will tell.
Pierce Brosnan stars in the new series Mobland hitting Paramount+ on April 30.
Related: Guy Ritchie’s ‘MobLand’ Promises Blood and Guns Galore With Tom Hardy in New Trailer
