In an obvious reference to the James Bond series, Vin Diesel does away with a suave-looking secret agent in his recent action blockbuster xXx. The big-budget thriller promised to offer a hip new alternative to the "tired" 007 series, with muscle-bound Vin Diesel giving us a tougher, cooler, street-smart secret agent, instead of the old-fashioned, patriotic Mr Bond. Xander Cage was a new generation of hero who listened to rap music and didn't give two figs about the secret service.
Well, Mr Diesel, it would seem that old-school charm doesn't die so easy. Going head-to-head in the hellomagazine.com poll to determine the hottest secret agent, Mr Bond has left Xander out for the count. Voters came out in force on the side of the slim, suave Pierce Brosnan, leaving pumped-up Vin to lick his wounds.
"I thought that this was an incredible character," Diesel once said of Xander. "Here's a guy who's a nihilist, that can care less about the world and doesn't like the world the way it is. Then he's recruited by the CIA." It will take more than nihilism, however, to overcome Ian Flemming's inimitable 007, who has endured for some 40 years.
Thousands of readers voted on who should be the world's top spy, with Pierce receiving 1,565 votes while Hollywood hardman Vin could only manage a puny 572. With a second xXx film in the works, Xander is hardly finished yet, but in competition with the indomitable Mr Bond, he may well die another day.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
