Interview with Swedish Bond girls Britt Ekland & Maud Adams

By: Anders Frejdh

Published:
2014-12-22

Swedish Bond girls Mary Goodnight (Britt Ekland) and Andrea Anders (Maud Adams) from The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) did a Q&A for the official James Bond website in conjunction to the film's 40th anniversary in December 2014.

Actress Britt Ekland answers her questions:

What are your fondest memories of THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN?
[Britt Ekland:] There are so many but just being in Cubby Broccoli's office and being told the part of Mary Goodnight was mine is forever etched in my memory. Flying with my children to Bangkok, filming in such an exotic place was very special. Meeting and becoming friends with Maud Adams and always having a great time together and working with Roger, who was the most non star-like actor I'd ever worked with. None of that staying in the trailer and only coming on set for the scene, he was always warm and jokey with everyone and had a very different sense of humor.

How much fun was it working with Roger Moore? What was the best part about filming with him?
[Britt Ekland:] The best part of working with Roger was that he made you feel good about yourself and confident and that is a quality not a lot of actors have. It's very scary to come on set and work with a famous star and even though I had co-starred in several American and English movies, I still felt very insecure! Roger did like to joke around and used to tease me and Maud, calling us Mud and Bert! Roger is a very charming man and it was ultimately one of the best movies I ever worked on, a very enjoyable time in my life.

What scene was the most physically demanding for you?
[Britt Ekland:] Any scene where you wear a bikini is demanding but I think the scenes where Roger and I run from the explosions were difficult because of timing and of course if you watch the film you'll see me, trying to throw myself on the ground as my bottom was too close to the explosive and Roger yanking me up and just kept going. Also running in high heel shoes, well wedges, is not easy.

What was your favourite location to shoot for the film and why?
[Britt Ekland:] I liked Bangkok but it was very hot and humid and very bad air quality, still is, I went back a couple of years ago and nothing had changed! Phuket was incredible, no hotels or tourists just miles and miles of empty white beaches. I enjoyed Hong Kong very much and used to spend my free time wandering around looking in antique shops.

Actress Maud Adams answers her questions:

Which other “Bond girl” would you have wanted to play?
[Maud Adams:] I never thought about that but, I think the franchise has done a great job in making sure the “Bond girls” are strong characters and contemporary. I have really enjoyed Judi Dench and will miss her participation. Not a“Bond girl” role but that would have been fun to play.

Knowing the impact that it had had on your life by becoming a Bond Girl, did you hesitate in accepting the role of Octopussy, because of all the media furore that comes with each film?
[Maud Adams:] I never hesitated. It was such a treat to be able to once again work with Roger Moore, the producer Cubby Broccoli and the crew I had come to like so much. Being offered the title role of Octopussy also was a real honour.

Which Bond film was most fun?
[Maud Adams:] I enjoyed them both, to a large degree because I was lucky to have Roger Moore as “my" Bond. Britt Ekland also became a good friend during GOLDEN GUN and we spent a lot of our free time together doing “girlie” things like shopping and gossiping.

What was it like working with Roger Moore?
[Maud Adams:] He was always very supportive, a real team player and kept everybody in good spirits during the filming.

How did your expectations compare with your experience?
[Maud Adams:] I was just trying to focus on doing my job and hoped for the best as I really didn’t understand just how big Bond was in the beginning. It was a bit daunting at first, when I realised what I had gotten involved with and also to get so much personal attention. Although I had made three feature length movies prior and you always hope for success, I had never worked on a movie where there was so much expectation, before we’d even shot one frame. Also, I never expected “Bond” to become such a long running franchise and that my participation would have such a lasting effect on my professional life. Kudos to Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, who deserve a lot of credit for keeping Bond relevant, meeting and often exceeding, the continued high expectations every time a new film is released.

How was it acting alongside Christopher Lee?
[Maud Adams:] He was a real gentleman during the filming and extremely professional coupled with a very dry sense of humour. I really didn’t know that much about him other than his Dracula interpretation at first but, I’m so grateful to have met and had the pleasure to have worked with this talented and wonderful man.

If you had the chance to do the roles again, would there be anything you would do differently?
[Maud Adams:] Gosh, I know I would have played both roles differently now that I have much more experience and confidence as an actor.

Editor's note:
For other posts about Britt Ekland featured on From Sweden with Love, click here.

For other posts about Maud Adams featured on From Sweden with Love, click here.

For more Bond interviews featured on From Sweden with Love, click here.

Photo above:
Maud Adams in a scene from The Man with the Golden Gun. Photo by Bob Penn. © 1974 Danjaq S.A. & United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.

For more information about the James Bond franchise, visit the official website:

www.007.com

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Interview with Swedish Bond girls Britt Ekland & Maud Adams

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