Playing Bond villain 'Jaws' changed Richard Kiel's life

Richard Kiel found popularity when he played one of the most memorable Bond villain 'Jaws' in the 1977 movie 'The Spy Who Loved Me' and 'Moonraker' in 1979.

The 7f 2in actor, who continues making TV shows and films to this day, said that initially he wanted to become a lawyer but his family could not afford the expenses due to the big recession in 1958, Daily Express reported.

The international star, who has acted in many movies including 'The Mean Machine', said that his appearance in 'Barbary Coast' got him noticed by the Bond people.

Michigan-born Kiel said that even though he considered Jaws to be another monster role, when Bond producer Cubby Broccoli told him that the character used his sharp teeth like pliers to kill people, he agreed anyway.

Kiel asserted to the publication that he realised for the first time that he had made it when preview audiences cheered and screamed when the villain popped his head above the waves to live another day at the end of the tenth spy film in the series.

He said that after the 007 films, he made many other movies such as 'Pale Rider' with Clint Eastwood, 'Happy Gilmore' with Adam Sandler, and Disney's 'Tangled' as the voice of Vlad.

Kiel added that right now he is making a big sci-fi movie called 'Overlord', but he loves to travel whenever he gets the time.

He insisted that playing Jaws changed his life so much that he got asked to attend fan conventions around the world, to make commercials for products and to write books.