The franchise has been gone from our screens for more than three years now, since Daniel Craig’s final outing in 2021’s No Time To Die. Amazon MGM bosses have warned fans to be “patient” with regard to Bond’s future - but we can’t help but speculate regardless.
Looking away from the pendulum of bookies’ odds for who the lead actor will be, we were inspired by Irish actor Saoirse Ronan saying she would like to play the next Bond villain. The topic of actors can wait for another day, as we wanted to look at characters who should be brought back.
Daniel Craig’s era already had (and wasted) the character of Blofeld - here are others from 007’s rogues gallery who could make a dastardly return.
1. Dr No
If Amazon end up rebooting the franchise, what better place to start than where the original movies all began. Dr No was hardly a charismatic villain in the eponymous movie, but the right actor could do the character justice. | Amazon MGM Studios
2. Goldfinger
Arguably the greatest James Bond villain of all-time, it would take a tight script, great screenplay and world-class actor to do Goldfinger justice. A star name like Benedict Cumberbatch, perhaps... but what a way this would be to reintroduce the franchise. | Shutterstock Photo: Shutterstock
3. Elliot Carver
A literal carbon copy of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, Elliot Carver was the lead villain in Piers Brosnan's second Bond outing, Tomorrow Never Dies. Easy to reimagine for the 2020s isn't it, a news corporation chief who spreads misinformation with devastating repercussions... | Amazon MGM Studios
4. Francisco Scaramanga
The Man With The Golden Gun was somehow a total waste of the late Christopher Lee's acting prowess. But what a performance he gave, and you could easily replicate it with another Thespian actor - I'm sure someone like Peter Capaldi would take to the role like a duck to water. | Amazon MGM Studios