Christopher Columbus: The Discovery of the Americas. Timothy Dalton and Isabella Rossellini, originally chosen to star in the picture, backed out when director George Pan Cosmatos was replaced by John Glen shortly before shooting began. Dalton later filed a suit against the producers for breach of contract and fraud, stating that they did not provide a bank guarantee for his $2.5 million salary. Glen had previously directed Dalton in both of his appearances as James Bond: "The Living Daylights" and "Licence to Kill". The film was not a commercial success, debuting at #4 and grossing $8 million against its $45 million budget. The film
Timothy Dalton the approach occurred when he was either 24 or 25 and had already done the film "Mary, Queen of Scots" (1971). Dalton told the producers that he was too young for the role. In a 1987 interview, Dalton said, "Originally I did not want to take over from Sean Connery. He was far too good, he was wonderful. I was about 24 or 25, which is too young. But when you've seen Bond from the beginning, you don't take over from Sean Connery." In either 1979 or 1980, he was approached again, but did not favour the direction the films