Pierce Brosnan was offered the role of James Bond, but the publicity improved "Remington Steele"s ratings and it was renewed, requiring Brosnan to contractually return to the show, this caused Eon Productions to have to look elsewhere for the new 007. The producers instead hired Timothy Dalton for "The Living Daylights" (1987), and "Licence to Kill" (1989). While Brosnan was reluctant to discuss losing the Bond role, in part because Dalton was a friend, he appeared in Diet Coke commercials portraying what the "Los Angeles Times" described as "a dashing Bond-like character", and NBC advertised "Noble House" with Brosnan dressed in a
James Bond filmography him to Daniel Craig, stating that "Despite chronological placement, it was Dalton, not Brosnan, who proved to be the prototype for the 21st century Bond.". Although Bond screenwriter Richard Maibaum called Sean Connery the best Bond, he considered Dalton the best actor of the four he worked with.Tom Mankiewicz agreed with this view, praising Dalton's androgynous facets.His predecessor, Roger Moore also felt that Dalton was the best actor to play Bond. Director John Glen also felt that Dalton was the best actor that portrayed Bond, and that he was ahead of his time, noting the comparisons between Daniel Craig's incarnation