Back in 2004, Pierce Brosnan was preparing to portray the iconic character of James Bond for the fifth time when he received the shocking phone call that the role had been recast.

Now, he is speaking out to reveal how he really felt when he heard this news.

Brosnan told The Guardian that he initially felt like he had been “kicked to the curb,” but he now has no hard feelings about the decision.

“There’s no regret,” the 67-year-old star said. “I do not let regret come into my world… It just leads to more misery and more regrets.”

Brosnan made his debut as Bond in the 1995 movie Goldeneye, and he went on to play the role again in 1997’s Tomorrow Never Dies, 1999’s The World is Not Enough and 2002’s Die Another Day. The part of Bond was then given to Daniel Craig because producers wanted a version of the character who could stay relevant in “a post-9/11, post-Bourne world.”

These days, Brosnan has nothing but fond memories of his time playing Bond.

“Bond is the gift that keeps giving and has allowed me to have a wonderful career,” he explained.

“Once you’re branded as a Bond, it’s with you forever, so you better make peace with it and you’d better understand that when you walk through those doors and pick up the mantle of playing James Bond.”

Brosnan was incredibly busy before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, as he has four films in production and a fifth awaiting release.

“I have no desire to retire,” Brosnan explained.

“I am a man of 67 years now and the parts that will come to me will be the parts of the elder, the parts of the comedic turn. At this point in life, I don’t know what else to do but act and paint.”

“I would like to think that the vaccine will come soon for the disease of corona,” he added.

“And I would like to think, also, a vaccine will come for the disease of racism and that we can really come together as communities to respect each other’s religions and beliefs and not to be so judgmental.”

Brosnan went on to talk about the hope he has for the future.

“With change comes struggle. But I have hope in our young people, I have hope in my sons’ generation that they will see the awful, shameful neglect that we’ve paid to each other’s religions, race, the nature of our lives, the environment that we live in,” he said.

“I have the strongest belief that the youth of today will make a big change, will have the courage to get out and vote for the rights of people – not racism and not ignorance and malignant narcissism.

“My eldest son said: ‘Dad is just a dreamer.’ But my dreaming has gotten me this far in life,” Brosnan concluded.

“So I shall continue dreaming and continue being the man I am and doing the best I can, with the tiny bit of gold talent that I’ve got.”