‘The Young and the Restless’ Star Eric Braeden Was Disqualified From Playing James Bond

For decades, Eric Braeden has been captivating viewers of The Young and the Restless. Like Victor Newman, Braeden has often received praise for his dignified, illustrious work. However, long before he was cast as Victor, Braeden had a very impressive career as a character actor.

While he has appeared in many movies and television shows over the years, there’s one particular role that Braeden never really had a chance at – the role of the British superspy James Bond. As one of Braeden’s co-stars once revealed, the actor was actually considered for the part, only to get disqualified due to a rather surprising reason. 

Why was Eric Braeden disqualified from portraying James Bond?

The role of James Bond has been played by many actors over the years, from Sean Connery to Daniel Craig. While every actor to have tackled the role bring their own unique perspective to the part, every single star has managed to imbue the character with sophistication and culture.

At one point, Braeden was actually in consideration for the part, with his tall, dark looks impressing Hollywood executives. One of Braeden’s former co-stars, Doug Davidson, admitted in a recent Twitter Q/A that Braeden was once in talks for the role.

As reported by SoapHub, Braeden didn’t actually get to the point of auditioning for the part of James Bond, getting disqualified for something surprising. “@EBraeden (Braeden) was disqualified from playing the role because he didn’t have a British passport,” Davidson said on Twitter.

Eric Braeden has a long and distinguished acting career

Braeden might not have gotten the opportunity to play Bond, but over the course of his career, he’s acted in many different movies and TV shows. His career began in the ’60s, with roles in a lot of high-profile projects. Braeden acted opposite screen greats like Marlon Brando in movies such as Morituri and landed roles in hit TV shows like Mission: Impossible and The Rat Patrol.

Braeden was an established screen presence by the ’70s, even expanding his range by acting in TV shows such as The Mary Tyler Moore Show. According to IMDb, his future changed forever in 1980 when he was offered the role of Victor Newman in the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless. 

Eric Braeden is best known for his role as Victor Newman

While Braeden’s role as Victor was originally designed to be a guest star, leaving the series after a 26-week run, his character immediately became popular with fans. Viewers gravitated to Braeden’s performance, and his contract was extended.

Victor was a total original on the soap, a villain who made decisions that even casual viewers could sympathize with. Over the years, Braeden has remained a mainstay on The Young and the Restless, and in 2020, the actor celebrated his 40th anniversary as the character of Victor Newman.

In a 2020 interview with TV Insider, Braeden opened up about his tenure on The Young and the Restless, discussing his most memorable scenes over the years. “My all-time favorite scenes were the one I had with Dorothy McGuire, who played my mother (Cora). Also, the ones I had with George Kennedy, who played my father (Albert),” Braeden said.

“They were so emotionally rich. I’ve also had memorable scenes with Melody (Thomas Scott, who plays longtime love Nikki) and Peter Bergman (who plays Jack Abbott).” Braeden also admitted that he finds the rivalry between Victor and Jack to be the “bedrock” of The Young and the Restless.

These days, Braeden is still going strong on the beloved daytime soap opera, with no indication that he’ll be stepping away anytime soon.