James Bond in film
The James Bond film series is a British series of motion pictures based on the fictional character of MI6 agent James Bond (code designation "007"), who originally appeared in a series of books by Ian Fleming. Earlier films were based on Fleming's novels and short stories, followed later by films with original storylines. It is the longest continually-running film series in history, having been in ongoing production from 1962 to the present (with a six-year hiatus between 1989 and 1995).[1] In that time Eon Productions has produced 22 films, at an average of about one every two years, usually produced at Pinewood Studios. The series has grossed just over US$5 billion to date, making it the second-highest-grossing film series of all-time (behind Harry Potter).[2] Six actors have portrayed 007 in the Eon series, with the Connery films largely setting the style and mood of the series, and Roger Moore starring in the most films.
Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman co-produced the Eon films until 1975, when Broccoli became the sole producer. Since 1995, Broccoli's daughter Barbara and stepson Michael G. Wilson have co-produced them. Broccoli's (and until 1975, Saltzman's) family company, Danjaq, has held ownership of the series through Eon, and maintained co-ownership with United Artists since the mid-1970s. From the release of Dr. No (1962) up to For Your Eyes Only (1981) the films were distributed solely by UA. When Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer bought UA in 1981, MGM/UA Entertainment Co. was formed and distributed the films until 1995. MGM solely distributed three films from 1997 to 2002 after UA retired as a mainstream studio. From 2006 to present MGM and Columbia Pictures have co-distributed the franchise, following the 2005 aquisition of MGM by a consortium led by Columbia's parent company, Sony Pictures Entertainment. In November 2010, MGM filed for bankruptcy. Following MGM's emergence from bankruptcy, Columbia has been co-production partner of the series with Danjaq.
Independently of the Eon series, there have been three additional film or TV productions with the character of James Bond – a satirical film spoof based on Casino Royale (1967), a remake of Thunderball entitled Never Say Never Again starring Sean Connery (1983) and a pre-Eon 1954 American television adaptation of Casino Royale.
Development
[edit]First Bond film
Previous attempts to adapt the James Bond novels for screen resulted in a 1954 television episode of Climax!, based on the first novel, Casino Royale, and starring American actor Barry Nelson as "Jimmy Bond". Ian Fleming desired to go one step further and approached producer Sir Alexander Korda to make a film adaptation of either Live and Let Die or Moonraker. Although Korda was initially interested, he later withdrew.[3] On 1 October 1959, it was announced that Fleming would write an original film script featuring Bond for producer Kevin McClory. Jack Whittingham also worked on the script, culminating in a screenplay entitled James Bond, Secret Agent.[4] However, Alfred Hitchcock and Richard Burton turned down roles as director and star, respectively.[5] McClory was unable to secure the financing for the film, and the deal fell through. Fleming used the story for his novel Thunderball (1961).[6]
In 1959, producer Albert R. Broccoli expressed interest in adapting the Bond novels, but his colleague Irving Allen was unenthusiastic. In 1961, Broccoli, now partnered with Harry Saltzman, purchased the film rights to all the Bond novels (except Casino Royale) from Fleming.[7] However, numerous Hollywood film studios did not want to fund the films, finding it "too British" or "too blatantly sexual".[8] The producers wanted US$1 million to either adapt Thunderball or Dr. No, and reached a deal with United Artists in July 1961. The two producers set up Eon Productions and began production of Dr. No
James Bond Films - Directors
Terence Young
Guy Hamilton
Lewis Gilbert
Peter R. Hunt
John Glen
Martin Campbell
Roger Spottiswoode
Michael Apted
Lee Tamahori
Marc Forster
Sam Mendes
Producers
Albert R. Broccoli
Harry Saltzman
Michael G. Wilson
Barbara Broccoli
Kevin McClory
Screenplay writers
Joanna Harwood
Richard Maibaum
Tom Mankiewicz
Christopher Wood
Michael G. Wilson
Neal Purvis
Robert Wade
Bruce Feirstein
Paul Haggis
Others
Music Directors
Monty Norman
John Barry
George Martin
David Arnold
Don Black
Actors
Sean Connery
George Lazenby
Roger Moore
Timothy Dalton
Pierce Brosnan
Daniel Craig
Barry Nelson (non-Eon)
David Niven (non-Eon)
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