Cary Grant - 1961
Reason For Decline: Cary felt he was too old at 58 to play the role.
Richard Burton - 1959, 1961, 1968
Reason For Decline: Wanted more than the producers were willing to pay.
Burt Reynolds - 1968
Reason For Decline: Burt felt as if Bond should be British.
Adam West - 1970
Reason For Decline: Like Burt Reynolds, Adam thought that Bond should be British.
Clint Eastwood - 1971
Reason For Decline: Also thought Bond should be British. We clearly need an American spy that lives up to Bond.
Liam Neeson - 1994
Reason For Decline: At the time, Liam wasn't interested in starring in action movies.
Colin Farrell - 2004
Reason For Decline: Colin didn't think audiences would want him to be James Bond.
Hugh Jackman - 2005
Reason For Decline: A busy schedule as well as Hugh's fear of being typecast.
Ewan McGregor - 2005
Reason For Decline: Ewan also had a fear of being typecast after taking on the iconic role.
Gerard Butler - 2009
Reason For Decline: Gerard thought that becoming Bond would ruin his career.
Source: wikipedia
