James Bond stands out as one of the most celebrated icons in cinematic history since the character first graced the screens in 1962. The character, adapted from Ian Fleming’s 1953 novel, Casino Royale, has been played by several endearing actors in the last sixty years, beginning with Sean Connery in the first James Bond film titled Dr. No. Since then, six other dashing men have assumed the character in the Eon Productions films, including Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig.
Since the announcement of Craig’s departure from a role he’s reprised in the last five Bond films, speculations about the identity of the next James Bond have been rife. Names like Idris Elba, Regé-Jean Page, and Theo James have popped up as top contenders to take on the mantle of the infamous spy in speculative fan rankings. Like the actors taking on the 007 designation, the James Bond character has also evolved with the changing times, infusing more modern plots, actions, personalities, one-liners, and how the action hero reacts to certain scenarios.
Daniel Craig’s James Bond has especially resonated with the younger crowd of JB fanatics, representing a generational cross in the franchise. Today, the James Bond films are a blend of modernity, action, inclusion, and a notable absence of the chauvinistic heroism that initially won hearts 63 years ago. Despite this evolution, though, the footprints of the earlier Bond films remain stamped throughout the internet, and in our fondest memories from the noughties and beyond.
Embarrassingly, several of these scenes carry cringe-worthy actions, too many flops, disturbing moments, and offensive slurs that wouldn’t have cut it in today’s cinema, much less, when perpetrated by a celebrated TV hero. So, between politically incorrect and flat-out offensive, here are five movie moments in the James Bond cinematic history that haven’t aged well.
1. Yellowface? (James Bond: You Only Live Twice, 1967)
In the 1967 installment of the James Bond movie titled You Only Live Twice, the fictional spy James Bond underwent a full-blown cosmetic makeover to pass as Japanese. The creators deemed it a great idea to go all out with the fake eyelids, prosthetics, complete tan, an Asian-style wig, and even a Japanese wife to blend in, as he infiltrates the Japanese Island of Kyoto to investigate the hijacking of the NASA spacecraft, Jupiter 16, and the suspected Japanese involvement following its disappearance in orbit.
While his disguise was indeed part of the job, and perhaps for the greater good, having the whitest guy in the MI6, and perhaps the entire James Bond franchise don the Japanese disguise is akin to today’s yellowface, the portrayal of East Asians in Hollywood via disguises. Such depictions, be it blackface, yellowface, redface, or any other race being portrayed by someone of a different race are now deemed offensive.
While Sean Connery (and the franchise as a whole) got away with this portrayal, various actors in recent years have faced the wrath of the cancel culture for less ostentatious depictions, both ignorantly in real life and on the job. This raises the question of how anyone approved that script, to begin with.
2. James Bond Seducing a Grieving Teenager (For Your Eyes Only, 1981)
The twelfth film in the James Bond Franchise and the fifth to star Roger Moore, For Your Eyes Only follows the iconic MI6 spy in his attempt to locate a missile command system. In his fifties at the time, Moore’s James Bond deals with the advances of a sweet and supposedly innocent teenager, Bibi Dahl, who had an unhinged crush on him. In one scene, the figure skater, (and almost Bond girl) made full-blown advances at him in her hotel room, which he declined, with the iconic words, “Get your clothes on and I’ll buy you an ice cream.” Points for restraint? Not quite.
As if Bibi showing up in a towel and flirtatiously inviting Bond to share her bed as she undressed under the sheets wasn’t creepy enough, the two share a kiss in the scene, which was cringe considering the actress, Lynn-Holly Johnson who played the daring teenager was only 22 at the time.
Even worse, James Bond kept up his smooth-talking persona throughout his interactions with her, laced with the familiar flirty undertones and playboy tactics with which he captured the hearts of multiple leading women in the spy movie. Made even worse by the negative public reception of the 1994 film, Leon: The Professional, which had similar “cringy” dialogue, the complicated dynamics between Bond and Bibi sure hasn’t aged well.
3. Tone-deaf Blaxploitation (Live and Let Die, 1973)
Based on Ian Fleming’s 1955 novel of the same name, the 1973 installment of the James Bond film, titled Live and Let Die starred Roger Moore as 007. The MI6 agent lands in the dangerous criminal underworld, to investigate the deaths of three British agents. His mission soon had him wrapped up in a larger scheme orchestrated by a powerful drug baron. Set in the 70s, when Blaxploitation action subgenres dominated Hollywood, it came as no surprise that the James Bond franchise would take its slice of the moment, going all out in its depiction of the underground world of gangsters, voodoo priests, Harlem drug lords, pimpmobiles, and caricatured villains (think Kananga).
More unsurprisingly, these villainous characters in the Blaxploitation-tinted entry were depicted by African Americans. This eerie mysticism was only bested by Bond’s bizarre stunts (hats off to his crocodile-jumping scene).
The concluding scene saw Bond end Kananga’s (Yaphet Kotto) tyranny by shoving a compressed gas pellet down his throat, causing him to blow up like a balloon. His ensuing one-liner “He always did have an inflated opinion of himself” should go down as one of the most insensitive post-kill quips in TV history, given the only reason its hilarity hit the mark was Kananga’s skin color, Blaxploitation troupes or not. Not even the series’ attempt to feature a black Bond girl, its very first, could redeem it. Critics praised the film’s “gritty” style at the time, but modern audiences deem it exploitative and tone-deaf.
4. Bond “Conquers” a Defiant Gay Woman (Goldfinger, 1964)
Often dubbed the best James Bond movie ever, and the film that brought the fictional spy into the spotlights, 1964’s Goldfinger, which starred Sean Connery, has one of the most disturbing scenes yet. The film introduces the most daring Bond girl, a pilot named Pussy Galore tasked with transporting James Bond to the Kentucky stud farm of the villainous Auric Goldfinger in a private jet following his capture. Unlike previous leading women, the no-nonsense Galore tentatively resists Bond’s charms for the most part, proving to be his physical and emotional equal.
However, her declaration of immunity to Bond’s charm only served to make the MI6 spy more determined to add her to his list of conquests, for reasons other than convincing her to change sides. Eventually, her defenses crumbled, and the two had a literal tumble in the hay that ended with Bond forcing himself on Galore until she stopped fending him off.
Even more disturbing than the smirk on Bond’s face after “subduing” her with brute strength, is the knowledge that the character, Pussy Galore, was an openly gay woman who led the Cement Mixers, an all-lesbian gang of bank robbers, in the actual Ian Fleming 1959 novel of the same title. Sadly, her sexuality, which should have been a historic moment of gay representation in Hollywood, remains muted throughout the film, save for the almost-negligible comment, “You can turn off the charm. I’m immune.”
Critics believe Fleming’s only reason for depicting the character as lesbian was to further emphasize Bond as a charmer, irresistible to anyone regardless of gender or sexuality. Worst still, the “conquest” scene is recognized as the moment Bond finally turns Galore into “a real woman.” A lowly move, at least by today’s standards, but it was the 60s, and uh… “non-consensual sex” was still romantic, albeit onscreen. In today’s world ladened with redefined classifications of what constitutes sexual abuse, and more sensitivity towards the PRIDE movement, “No” means No.
The scene had every characteristic of “rape,” with no justification even for an iconic protagonist such as Bond, often idolized as nothing short of the patron saint of gentlemen. Sixty years later and our gaydars still aren’t ready for this.
5. James Bond Slapping Women (From Russia With Love, 1963)
The best thing about being the first-ever actor to play James Bond is the ability to get away with things that have cost many other actors their careers in an industry that leaves a stereotypic stench that lasts for generations. Sean Connery’s Bond did get away with many things considered culturally and politically inappropriate today. Case in point: The multiple slap scenes orchestrated by the MI6 agent himself in the line of duty. In one scene from Goldfinger 1964, the character seemed to justify his physical assault with the then-hilarious remark, “Man Talk,” after slapping a woman on the butt to shut her up.
While this prime moment may easily pass for Bond’s usual “healthy” hint of misogyny often considered charming, several instances of Bond getting slappy plays out throughout earlier installments of the franchise, towards men, and women!
Granted, some may have been arguably well-deserved. However, outside movie plots, most of these physical assaults could have landed the beloved spy tons of lawsuits. Worse still, most of the recipients of these slaps dished by the so-called hero were women. Pretty sure hitting a woman wasn’t an ideal main-character move even in the sixties.
But up to the man who played Bond, there was no more appropriate reprimand for Russian cipher clerk, Tatiana Ramanova in 1963’s From Russia With Love. The climactic scene had James Bond discover Tatiana’s involvement in the plot to discredit him. Without second thoughts, he slaps her hard on the face in a fit of rage. While the corrective measure elicited no audience sympathy towards Tatiana, there is something off-putting about Bond being the executor of said punishment in this scene. But Connery thinks otherwise.
In a 1965 Playboy interview, Connery endorsed “openhanded” slaps for women, adding that he saw nothing “particularly wrong with hitting a woman.” Twenty years later, the Connery interview with Barbara Walters revisited this hypocritical moment in cinematic history, with the James Bond role-player standing by his words even as the iconic broadcaster put him on blast. Quite disappointing to realize that even the loathed Joffrey Baratheon (Game of Thrones) had more restraint than a celebrated hero.
So, there you have it! Regardless of how timeless James Bond may be, thrilling its wide audience after six decades and counting, his past isn’t flawless. Thankfully, recent installments — especially those starring Daniel Craig — have made efforts to modernize the character and distance him from his more outdated traits laced with misogyny and racial discrepancies. Yet, these moments without a doubt, remain a reminder of just how far the franchise (and Hollywood) has come, and how far it still has to evolve.
