British Actor John Cleese says James Bond is no longer funny because Asian audiences don’t get the joke.
John Cleese claims James Bond films have ditched the humour because Asian audiences would like more action scenes and don’t understand British sense of humor.
Previously, one-liners and gadgets were once the staple of every James Bond movie. But, the comic scenes are cut to a minimum in order to cater to Asian audiences who don’t understand British sense of humor, according to John Cleese.
The star of Monty Python who appeared opposite to Pierce Brosnan in two 007 films in The World is Not Enough (1999) and Die Another Day (2002). John Cleese was not invited to reprise his role in the Bond series and Cleese argues that the Daniel Craig films have a “fundamental flaw” of being unfunny and too stuffed with action sequences.
In an interview with Radio Times, John Cleese said “I did two James Bond movies and then I believe that they decided that the tone they needed was that of the Bourne action movies, which are very gritty and humourless.”
“Also, the big money was coming from Asia, from the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, where the audiences go to watch the action sequences, and that’s why in my opinion the action sequences go on for too long, and it’s a fundamental flaw.
“The audiences in Asia are not going for the subtle British humour or the class jokes.”
The franchise took a different turn in 2006 with Casino Royale. The character Q was compeltely removed, and the closest thing to a joke in the movie was the bartender’s question asked James Bond what he wanted to drink, and he responded: “Do I look like I give a damn?”
Casino Royale’s director, Martin Campbell, said at the time he had tried to film “more realistic” action scenes, adding: “We kept away from gadgets. We couldn’t suddenly have John Cleese storming in with a rocket car.”
In 2012 for the movie Skyfall, Q reappeared for a small joke. The movie opened to strong box office numbers but was edited by Chinese censors, with references to prostitution in Macau and torture by Chinese interrogators cut out.
Tom Cruise‘s latest movie, ‘Edge of Tomorrow‘ performed badly in the United States. But, it was extremely popular in Indonesia, Taiwan and South Korea.
With movies being distributed internationally there is a demand or “water down” to make movies that will make everyone happy.
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