Summary
- Director Lee Tamahori tried to get Michelle Yeoh to reprise her role as Wai Lin from
Tomorrow Never Dies
in
Die Another Day
‘s Hong Kong sequence. - Yeoh turned it down because the role was too small after some of her recent movie successes.
-
Die Another Day
was generally poorly received and may have benefited from bringing Yeoh back for an expanded role alongside Brosnan’s 007.
Die Another Day director Lee Tamahori reveals that a returning James Bond character almost appeared in the film, but the actor turned it down. Serving as Pierce Brosnan’s final outing as 007, Die Another Day was released in 2002, following the character as he attempts to take down a diamond mogul attempting to build a devasting satellite weapon. The film, which proved to be a divisive swansong for Brosnan’s Bond, features supporting characters played by Halle Berry and Rosamund Pike.
In a recent interview with CinemaBlend, Tamahori reveals that Brosnan was almost joined by a previous “Bond girl” in Die Another Day. According to the director, Michelle Yeoh was being eyed to reprise her role as Wai Lin from 1997’s Tomorrow Never Dies, but she actor turned it down. Check out Tamahori’s full comment below:
So lots of modifications went on, but yes Michelle Yeoh was supposed to come back into the picture, and in a not substantial part, but for the Hong Kong sequence. And we went out to see her, we went out to have a meeting with her in Hong Kong, and she turned it down. She didn’t wanna play a small part. … After Crouching Tiger [Hidden Dragon] and all that, she had moved on in stature.
Should Michelle Yeoh Have Returned For Die Another Day?
Wai Lin’s Return Would Have Been More Of An Extended Cameo
Generally speaking, Die Another Day was not well received. The film currently sports a lackluster 55% critics score and 41% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, with the film ultimately proving too ridiculous and far-fetched. Despite the negative response from viewers, Die Another Day was a box office hit, earning an impressive $432 million worldwide. Tomorrow Never Dies wasn’t really a critical hit either, however, with a 57% critics score and 53% audience score, suggesting that Yeoh appearing in Die Another Day wouldn’t have tainted her previous appearance in the franchise.

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Pierce Brosnan’s second James Bond movie, Tomorrow Never Dies, wasn’t praised by critics, but its satire of mass media was surprisingly prescient.
Though neither Die Another Day nor Tomorrow Never Dies were critical darlings, it’s certainly worth questioning what a brief appearance by Yeoh’s character would have added to the latter film. By the sound of things, the role would have almost been more of a cameo, with Bond then moving along and the rest of the film playing out as normal. If Yeoh’s character was brought back in a more substantial capacity for Die Another Day, however, that would have been interesting.
Yeoh’s Lin marks the franchise’s first ethnic Chinese Bond girl.
One of the ways in which Daniel Craig’s tenure as Bond shook up the franchise is with its character arcs playing out across multiple films. Eva Green’s Vesper Lynd, for example, may die in Casino Royale, but she continues to affect Bond moving forward, and Léa Seydoux’s Madeleine Swann does actually appear in multiple films. If Die Another Day had taken this same approach with Yeoh’s character, the film would have broken some exciting new ground for the franchise and potentially have been more warmly received.
Source: CinemaBlend