Accessory to Murder

Ever since I wrote my previous post on Best Bond Villains, I have been thinking that a tribute to these masters of villainy is incomplete without a mention of their henchmen (and women) who – more than their bosses – had come very close to finishing Mr. Bond off.

Here’s my Top 5.


1. Jaws
• Film: The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker
• Ferocity: Steel Teeth
• Employer : Dr. Karl Stromberg and Hugo Drax
• Status: Unknown. Turns over a new leaf when he finds love and helps Bond escape
• Actor: Richard Kiel
*only villain to have been repeated in a Bond series apart from Blofeld


2. Odd Job
• Film: Goldfinger
• Ferocity: Steel rimmed bowler hat
• Employer: Goldfinger
• Status: Dead. Electrocuted by Bond
• Actor: Harold Sakata


3. Red Grant
• Film: From Russia With Love
• Ferocity: Watch with razor
• Employer: S.M.E.R.S.H.
• Status: Dead. Strangled by Bond
• Actor: Robert Shaw


4. May Day
• Film: View to a Kill
• Ferocity: Strength and Cunning
• Employer : Max Zorin
• Status: Presumed dead. Gives up her own life to save Bond when betrayed by Zorin
• Actor: Grace Jones


5. Xenia Onatopp
• Film: Golden Eye
• Ferocity: Sadist….derives sexual pleasure by killing
• Employer: Soviet military/Janus
• Status: Dead. Crushed to death while fighting Bond
• Actor: Famke Janssen


Special Mention: Fatima Blush in Never Say Never Again (could not be ranked as it is not a EON production) would perhaps rank right after Jaws in terms of ferocity. Employed by Largo, Barbara Carrera, has essayed the role of this sadist assassin to perfection. Unlike other women villains of the pre 90 Bond films (Pussy Galore, May Day, Octopussy) she remains evil till the very end and is the only woman to have been killed by Bond’s own hands (by a pen that doubles up as a gun) – till Elektra King’s death(Xenatopp was killed indirectly by Bond).

She remains the only Bond woman (villain or otherwise) who demanded a written acknowledgement of being Bond’s best lover……..to which Bond quips “I just remembered. It’s against Service policy to give endorsements.”

N.B.- Xenia Onatopp in Golden Eye was modeled in the same lines as her.

But before I end this post , here’s a list of five henchmen whose roles had a lot of potential but were not exploited well:
• Nick Nack (The Man with the Golden Gun) – lovable dwarf valet of Scaramanga.
• Tee Hee (Live and Let Die) – Hit man of Mr. Big…. with a steel hook for an arm and a menacing smile.
• Mr. Kid and Mr. Wint (Diamonds are Forever) – perhaps the most under-utilized of all henchmen. They do nothing much beyond talking to each other in a dull monotone.
• Necros (The Living Daylights) – KGB assassin with the body of a Greek God and headphone wires as a weapon (modeled after Red Grant)
• Dario (License to Kill) – (young) Benocio Del Toro’s talents completely wasted.

The Best Bond Villains

Ever since Dr. No tried to eliminate 007 in 1962, an array of megalomaniacs, terrorists, smugglers, drug runners, gun runners and Russian agents have attempted to kill the world’s most famous spy.

As any true Bond fan will tell you, no Bond film is complete without exotic locales, gorgeous women and villains with grandiose plans of destroying the world.

Critics have often called Bond villains extremely stupid because they think of fantastical ways to kill Bond rather than a simple bullet in the head (Tarantula, Snake, Shark, Alligators, Golden beam.....the list can go on). But the enemies of Bond, like Bond himself, are not mere mortals.....they are people who think of creating a new world order....they blackmail super powers with nuclear bombs....they build headquarters under the sea and in space....such fantastical people surely cannot be expected to use something as base as a gun to finish their arch rival off.

Come to think of it, it is an extremely difficult and frustrating task to be a Bond villain. No matter how meticulous the planning or how careful the execution,he would always fail – because he has not accounted for that one element that is sure to jeopardize his plan – Bond himself.

The frustration of Bond villains has perhaps been best voiced by Goldfinger…..

Bond: “You expect me to talk....”
Goldfinger: “No Mr. Bond....I expect you to die!”

Every Bond villain has tried to re-write the definition of evil. From murderous KGB agents to the all powerful S.P.E.C.T.R.E……..from megalomaniac billionaires to power hungry seductresses, the passage of time has produced a wide spectrum of worthwhile adversaries for Bond. Listed below are my top 5.


1. Dr. Karl Stromberg
• Film: The Spy Who Loved Me
• Profession: Marine Biologist
• Ambition: Destroy the world to create a new one beneath the sea
• Nemesis: Shot by Bond
• Actor: Kurt Jurgens


2. Auric Goldfinger
• Film: Goldfinger
• Profession: Jeweller (and gold smuggler)
• Ambition: Destroy US Gold reserves in Fort Knox to increase value of own
gold holding
• Nemesis: Sucked out of a plane while attempting to kill Bond
• Actor: Gert Frobe


3.Francisco Scaramanga
• Film: The Man With The Golden Gun
• Profession: Professional Assassin
• Ambition: In possession of a solar powered gun that he would sell to the
highest bidder
• Nemesis: Shot by Bond
• Actor: Christopher Lee


4. Kamal Khan and General Orlov (shared)
• Film: Octopussy
• Profession: Smuggler, Russian General
• Ambition: World disorder by detonating nuclear bomb at an American air force
base in West Germany
• Nemesis: Khan crashes his plan and Orlov is shot by Russian troops – neither
is killed by Bond
• Actor(s): Louis Jourdan, Steven Berkoff


5. Max Zorin
• Film: View To A Kill
• Profession: Owner of Zorin Industries
• Ambition: Destruction of Silicon Valley to sell own brand of silicon chips
• Nemesis: Falls down Golden Gate bridge while fighting Bond
• Actor: Christopher Walken


Special Mention: Maximillian Largo in Never Say Never Again (not a EON production and hence not listed above) would perhaps rank as the number one Bond villain. Played by Klaus Maria Brandauer, in Largo we see a character who has both evil and class with a dash of craziness making him the scariest of all Bond villains. He meets his end at the hands of his mistress, Domino, who kills him with a harpoon.