First james bond movie casino royale

Watching all the James Bond movies in order is a huge undertaking and requires a little investigating into the franchise's history in order to pull off. Based on the books by Ian Fleming, the MI6 agent was inspired by Fleming’s time in the British Naval Intelligence Division while serving in World War II. There are 40 officially licensed Bond books written by six different authors, but Fleming’s original 14 books founded an entire spy-filled universe that has stood the test of time. The order of the films does not follow the correct order of Fleming’s novels. Casino Royale was written by Fleming in , followed by Live and Let Die and Moonraker.

Dr. No was the first James Bond movie to actually be filmed, however, due in large part to budgeting reasons. Hollywood saw the character as too British and scandalous, so money did not come easy. Additionally, Fleming sold the movie rights of Casino Royale to producer Gregory Ratoff in Eon Productions, run by Albert “Cubby” Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, purchased the rights to the entire James Bond story from Fleming in , and with Casino Royale not included, they had to settle for Dr. No. It was not an origin story but was the perfect film to kick off the franchise while cementing many of the franchise's iconic aspects that still continue to this day.

How Many James Bond Movies Are There?

"Unofficial" Bond Movies Complicate The Franchise

When looking at how many James Bond movies there are, it is a bit more complicated than expected. Two of the movies featuring the famous spy are considered “non-Eon” films, having been produced by other studios. Casino Royale was first in , starring David Niven in what was a spy movie spoof by Columbia Pictures. The second was Never Say Never Again in in the “Battle of the Bonds.” Broccoli and Saltzman wanted Thunderball to be the first Bond film, but due to a legal dispute between Fleming and producer Kevin McClory, that film was not an option to start the franchise.

McClory was awarded screenplays he and Fleming co-wrote because of the plagiarism suit filed against Fleming. McClory assembled a team to produce a new script based on Thunderball and convinced Sean Connery to reprise the role and compete against Roger Moore, Broccoli, and Octopussy. As a film released by someone other than Eon Productions, Never Say Never Again isn't a Bond film in the conventional sense which is confusing given that it features perhaps the most iconic Bond actor in the role. There are 25 total official James Bond movies and two that are not connected to the main franchise.

• Dr. No() – Connery
• From Russia with Love () - Connery
• Goldfinger () - Connery
• Thunderball () - Connery
• You Only Live Twice () - Connery
• Casino Royale () – Niven (non-Eon)
• On Her Majesty’s Secret Service () - Lazenby
• Diamonds Are Forever () - Connery
• Live and Let Die () - Moore
• The Man with the Golden Gun () - Moore
• The Spy Who Loved Me () - Moore
• Moonraker () - Moore
• For Your Eyes Only () - Moore
• Octopussy () - Moore
• Never Say Never Again () – Connery (non-Eon)
• A View to a Kill () - Moore
• The Living Daylights () - Dalton
• Licence to Kill () - Dalton
• GoldenEye () - Brosnan
• Tomorrow Never Dies () - Brosnan
• The World Is Not Enough () - Brosnan
• Die Another Day () - Brosnan
• Casino Royale () - Craig
• Quantum of Solace () - Craig
• Skyfall () - Craig
• Spectre () - Craig
• No Time to Die () – Craig

Do The James Bond Movies Follow The Books?

Each Actor Was Allowed Their Own Take On

Ian Flemings' books provided the foundation for all of the James Bond movies, but not all of them are based on novels while others are loose adaptations. Exceptions like Thunderball, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and Goldfinger do follow the plots of their respective books, but Casino Royale () is the closest in terms of matching the novel’s plot — while also improving on it. Even the character of Bond himself became something new each time a new actor took over the role.

Connery and Moore were the charismatic, playboy-type, although Connery had more of a rugged look than Moore. Timothy Dalton was an avid reader of the Bond books and sought a more real and raw Bond, something closer to Fleming’s version. Brosnan and Craig were cunning and smooth, but Brosnan leaned away from emotional decisions, whereas Craig's Bond can have a ferocious bite when tested. The different iterations of Bond portrayed are why fans love the franchise so much.

How Long Do Actors Play James Bond?

Roger Moore Holds The Record For Bond Appearances

A hunt for a new James Bond is always a challenge since finding the right actor to follow in a solid history of Bond films is a make or break for the franchise. Many of the actors who have portrayed stayed for several films, although George Lazenby starred in only one film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, before stepping down. When Connery left after You Only Live Twice, the team sought to build around their new star in Lazenby, but he declined, and Connery stepped back into the role for Diamonds are Forever. This gave Connery six official James Bond movies and one non-EON movie over 10 years.

Roger Moore was the next major James Bond after Connery and starred in seven official movies, one more than Connery, over 12 years. Timothy Dalton only took two turns from to and then Pierce Brosnan joined the franchise. He starred in a total of four movies over seven years. The most recent Bond was Daniel Craig, who helped reinvent the franchise with five interconnected films over 15 years. As the James Bond fandom prepares for yet another change, now might be the perfect time to revisit the movies that came before.

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