4. Timothy Dalton

Dalton was in two Bond films in the '80s and quit after a legal issue halted production for several years. His task in those movies was nearly impossible: to bring the character more in line with Fleming’s vision of Bond as a grittier and more serious character, but not alienate the fans who’d spent more than a decade watching Roger Moore inhabit the part. (This being the '80s, he also toned down the sex appeal to Bond, which is in sharp relief when compared to Connery, Moore, and Brosnan after him). When you look at his two movies divorced of the broader context, you see where the franchise would shift two decades later.

Standout Film: The Living Daylights