BBC News Brazil
Actor George Lazenby, who has played James Bond in the movies, has apologized after being accused of making “creepy” and “disgusting” comments at an event about the British secret agent franchise.
The actor, who played the role in the 1969 film “007 – On Her Majesty’s Service”, was one of the participants of an Australian tour called “The Music of James Bond”, focused on the films of the famous character of literature and cinema. .
Members of the public in the city of Perth were offended by the actor’s “homophobic” and “misogynist” comments, according to local media. After the criticism, Lazenby said he was “saddened to hear” that his stories offended fans.
“It was never my intention to make offensive or homophobic comments and I’m sorry if my stories I’ve shared too often have been interpreted that way,” he wrote in a statement.
The 83-year-old Australian actor has been removed from all future performances on the tour.
Theater production company Concertworks said it was “extremely saddened and disappointed” by Lazenby’s “language, comments and recollections” during Saturday’s show in Perth.
“These were personal opinions and there is no excuse for that in today’s society. They do not reflect the views of Concertworks,” said Aaron Kernaghan, attorney for the company.
The company has contacted viewers to issue a refund to anyone who paid for the ticket, he added. Meanwhile, the company has “chose to terminate its relationship with Lazenby” and has begun “a thorough review of the matter”.
According to a woman who attended the performance, Lazenby spent the interview “basically talking about his sexual conquests”.
“He was homophobic and he certainly wasn’t talking about his movie as James Bond,” she told Perth-based radio station 6PR. “He also underestimated Queen Elizabeth the day after she died,” she added.
“It was absolutely unbelievable… At one point he quoted an Australian cricketer whose daughter he was ‘interested in’. And he said he dragged the woman out of a pub and put her in a car in London, which again it’s horrible. It wasn’t charming or funny. It was scary, it was offensive… It was disgusting, there’s no two ways to put it.”
Another participant described the performance as “misogynistic stories about George Lazenby’s sexual prowess, intimate details of diarrhea and objectification of women”.
“It wasn’t until a spectator shouted ‘Excuse me this is offensive’ that the tension became evident and George was taken off stage and the music saved the day,” one spectator told The West Australian newspaper.
Joseph McCormack, who also watched the show, said on Twitter that at least one member of the audience “shouted that the Lazenby line was an insult”.
A second person, who called broadcaster 6PR, defended the actor, saying his stories were a deliberate “exaggeration” for comic effect. “He didn’t kidnap [ninguém], there was no rape. People were alarmed. [O show] It was a lot of fun until people started screaming and booing.”
The BBC was unable to independently verify the nature of Lazenby’s comments in the presentation.
The West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO), which also performed on the show, criticized the actor in a statement released over the weekend.
“His memories were personal views that may have reflected a time when such behavior was tolerated but was never acceptable,” the orchestra wrote in a note.
“The comments were his and do not reflect our current society. His views are not shared or endorsed by WASO or the Perth Concert Hall.”
Australia’s Culture Minister David Templeman added: “I understand that the public has made their views clear on the content of what he said.”
Lazenby was catapulted to fame in 1969, when he was cast to replace Sean Connery in the James Bond franchise.
A former model and with no previous acting experience, he starred in just one film – claiming to have turned down $1 million to revisit the role in a later feature.
“Bond is a brute… I’ve already left him behind. I’ll never act like him again. Peace. That’s the message now,” he said at the time.
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