Top 10: James Bond Villains

Thanks to Covid, we will now have to wait until 2021 to see Daniel Craig's final outing as James Bond in 'No Time to Die.'

In the meantime, with no new movie to enjoy (or find fault with), let's sate our 007 cravings by taking a look back at the venerable, and often ridiculous, franchise.

And we're going to start by exploring one of its most important ingredients; the villains. Crazy, evil, and never less than entertaining, here's my Top 10 list of favorite 007 baddies.

10. Dr. No (Joseph Wiseman) - 'Dr. No' - 1962.

The first Bond baddie wasn't necessarily the best, but he created the template all his predecessors would follow.

Utterly ludicrous back-story? Yep - he's a Chinese-German scientist with prosthetic metal hands, who, having previously stole millions off a Chinese crime syndicate, now works for the nefarious organisation SPECTRE who - basically - just want to cause chaos.

Utterly bonkers evil scheme that - upon closer reflection - actually makes little sense? Also yep - he plans to disrupt the US' space programme, blame the Russians, and start World War Three. Let's be honest; there's easier ways he could've chosen.

Fantastical secret hideaway populated by an army of expendable minions? Likewise, yep - a cavernous lair in Jamaica, manned by lots of men in jumpsuits.

Propensity to tell James Bond - the very man who's been assigned to stop him - ALL the intricate details of his diabolical master-plan? Of course, it's another yep - I know 007 doesn't always see the wood for the trees, but essentially telling him how he can actually prevent Armageddon seems a bit short-sighted.

But, despite the utter ludicrousness of it all, Wiseman is actually understated, underplaying the titular, metal-handed doctor. As a result, there's an air of genuine menace, of creepiness. He may not be Bond's match physically, but you have no problem in believing he'd happily kill him.

007 is only as good as the villains he has to defeat; Dr. No ensured the franchise got off to a very solid start.

9. Elliot Carver (Jonathan Pryce) - 'Tomorrow Never Dies' - 1997.

Depending on who you speak to, Pierce Brosnan's 2nd outing as 007 is either a damp squib, or a highlight of the series - it's probably the most divisive entry in the canon. (For what it's worth, I think it's great. Flawed, but still huge fun.)

Either way, Pryce's Carver is exceptionally good value. The fictional media mogul is obviously a very pointed commentary on the influence of real-life media moguls, and their desire to not simply sensationalize world events to increase circulation, but also (potentially) manipulate those events to their own ends.

There's a smidge of realism - again, the villain's scheme revolves around an attempt to incite a war, this time between the Chinese and the British. Given the political tension between the two countries in real-life, it's a bit too close for comfort. However, the reason why is the real 'kicker'; because the viewing figures would be astronomical.

Again, it's not beyond the realms of impossibility.

Similar to Dr. No, Carver is no match - physically - for Bond; but that's why he's got the imposing side-kick, Stamper. However, he's smarmy, smart, and married to one of 007's former girlfriends (awkward). He hasn't got a lair, but he does have a fancy boat that is undetectable to radar.

The film itself is imperfect, but Carver is one of the best adversaries 007 has faced. It was almost a shame when Bond threw him face first into a giant drill.

8. General Georgi Koskov - (Jeroen Krabbé) - 'The Living Daylights' - 1987.

Timothy Dalton's brief run as Bond, kicked off with 'The Living Daylights.' The Welshman divides fans - some think he's the closest to Fleming's original creation; others find him too bland.

However, his debut film is brilliant; muscular, yet with enough touches of the outrageousness we need from a 007 film. And Koskov is central to its success.

The errant-KGB officer is a bit different from most of the other baddies on this list; Georgi's scheme may be overly elaborate, but he's little more than a cowardly criminal. He's in cahoots with an American arms-dealer, and their plan is to embezzle KGB funds, which they'll use to buy diamonds, which they will then use to purchase drugs, which they'll then use to buy weapons... told you it was complex.

But, strip it all back, and all Koskov wants is money. He's probably insane, but there's no fanaticism - he just wants to be rich. Capable of being charming, he's also wheedling, and driven by utterly base desires. Which makes him a different, less predictable, threat to Bond.

He's also a renegade Russian General being played by a Dutchman. Which is the kind of surreal touch only the Bond producers would execute.

7. Elektra King (Sophie Marceau) -'The World is not Enough' - 1999.

The Bond movies don't do twists - why take a risk in deviating from a formula that's made billions of dollars? However, they took that chance in Brosnan's third film.

And they pulled it off.

On the surface, King, an emotionally-damaged oil heiress, is being targeted by Renard, the world's most wanted terrorist. As it turns out, Renard is actually working for her, and helping her to increase the value of her own oil pipeline via means of a nuclear explosion in Turkey.

I didn't see it coming. Nor, for that matter, did 007 himself; he spends the first half of the film being 'played' by King.

Marceau is fabulous - fragile when she needs to be; brutally sadistic when she doesn't. Yes, she's mad, but King is also arrogant, yet vulnerable; needy, but driven: There's no trace of the 'one-note' cartoon megalomaniac here.

However, she doesn't just get a spot in the countdown for what she brings to the film simply in her own right; she also warrants billing because of the darkness she brings out of Bond.

Brosnan was a great 007 - not a great actor, but he was everything Bond should be. But, like Roger Moore, there was often too much 'light', which was at odds with who Bond really is: 007 isn't just a spy - he's a killer, a government-sanctioned assassin. He literally kills people for a living. He might be suave, smooth, and wear nice suits, but he's also a lonely, damaged murderer.

When Bond coldly dispatches King, we finally see it. Suddenly, Brosnan WAS 007. In that moment, we see a darkness that made Bond more than just an invincible, world-saving, imperialist dinosaur. King brought out the best, and worst in Bond - and the character, and film were better for it.

Oh, then 007 jumps off a balcony, into the sea, boards a nuclear submarine, and saves the world. Bond's moral complexity was only short-lived, but it was worth it.

6. Francisco Scaramanga (Christopher Lee) -'The Man with the Golden Gun' - 1974.

Okay, okay - the film isn't fantastic. Despite being a great Bond, some of the actual Roger Moore films are indifferent, to say the least. And 'The Man with the Golden Gun' is certainly indifferent.

And it really, really shouldn't be. Not only does it have some superb set-pieces, it also has one of the best purveyors of screen villainy in cinema history - the mighty Christopher Lee.

Obviously, Lee is fantastic - his hit-man-for-hire / megalomaniac is urbane, witty, charismatic, and blatantly insane. More importantly, despite the seeming comic-book invincibility that cloaked Moore's 007, you got the distinct impression that Lee's Scaramanga might - just might - be able to kill him.

To be honest, until Christopher Walken unleashed all-manner of Christopher Walken-ishness a decade later, Scaramanga was the only other worthy adversary Moore's super spy ever encountered.

Had the actual movie itself been better, Lee might have made it to the top-spot. The sheer fact that he's made it this high is purely down to him.

5. Auric Goldfinger (Gert Frobe) - 'Goldfinger' -1964.

"Do you expect me to talk?"

"No, Mister Bond: I expect you to die."

As movie quotes go, it's a zinger.

What makes it even more delicious is that Frobe didn't even actually say it. The German actor's English was so poor it had to be re-dubbed by another actor. Only the Bond producers would cast a performer who couldn't even deliver his own dialogue.

But, whether it's in part due because of the language issue, there's something not quite 'right' about the wealthy psychopath who is obsessed with gold. He's, child-like, then cynical; cowardly, yet brazen. You don't need to know anything about his ridiculous scheme to make the gold reserves at Fort Knox radioactive to know there's something seriously 'wrong' with him. Quite honestly, he's a bit repulsive.

'Goldfinger' marked the film where the Bond franchise hit it's stride - it was confident, brash, and Sean Connery was now utterly at ease with the role. However, Frobe's frog-like villain added so much - even if he didn't really say any of his lines.

4. Max Zorin (Christopher Walken) - 'A View to a Kill' - 1985.

Yes - Roger Moore was a decade too old to be playing 007 by this point. However, his swansong at least got the villain it deserved - the gloriously over-the-top Max Zorin.

The plot is wafer-thin: Bond discovers the industrialist Zorin is going to destroy Silicon Valley as this will then give him the monopoly in the manufacturing of microchips. So far, so Bond.

However, by casting one of the most idiosyncratic actors on the planet, the producers gave us one of the greatest screen baddies of all time. When tasked with playing Bond's nemesis, you only have two courses of action - underplay it (like Wiseman or Marceau), or go so big your performance can be seen from space. Walken chose the latter.

Walken always seems to deliver his lines as if the rules of English grammar and syntax don't apply to him; he stresses all the wrong words, and takes pauses for no discernible reasons. It's one of the reasons I'll watch him in anything - it's always fun. Strange, but fun.

But, this strangeness couldn't have been more apt for Zorin. He's an ex-KGB operative, who may have been the result of Nazi biological-engineering. He's got a silly, bleach-blonde haircut, and likes to giggle at inappropriate moments. He's obviously very, very mad - Walken just didn't hide it. It's a thing of beauty.

The only downside was that, given Walken's immense physicality, and Zorin's utter craziness, there's no way he's losing to Bond in a one-on-one. Not least as 007 was nearing pension age. Had Dalton or Brosnan been cast as Bond by this stage, that climax on the Golden Gate Bridge could have been one of the series's high-points.

Sadly, Walken's pantomime baddie didn't get the death he deserved.

However, given the entertainment he provided us with up to this point, it's a small price to pay.

3. Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem) - 'Skyfall' -2012.

Yes, yes - I know: Silva's plan is... well, I would say awful, but I'm not sure it could even be called 'a plan.' But, quite frankly, who cares when the villain is this much fun? The former-MI6 agent is a scenery-chewing monster - capable of being hilarious one moment, coldly murderous the next.

He also gets bonus points for being the antithesis of Bond, and admitting that, while Daniel Craig's 007 was leaping over moorlands and falling into frozen lakes, he was getting tired of all the running around by the end.

However, like all the best Bond villains, you know that, despite Bardem -gloriously - making Silva a touch effeminate, similarly to Zorin, he could also match 007 physically if he chose. Like Walken, the Spanish actor is a formidable presence; although Silva often claimed indifference at Bond's old-fashioned ways, I'm not sure Bond would've found it straightforward in a one-on-one fist fight.

And when you consider the robust, muscularity Daniel Craig has brought to the role, that's saying something.

As well as being brilliant in his own right, Bardem also benefited from being in a good (very good) 007 movie. The plot might be bonkers, but 'Skyfall' looks stunning, and is a genuine highlight of the series.

If only Christopher Lee had had the same luxury...

2. Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen) - 'Casino Royale' - 2006.

In keeping with the added air of realism Craig brought with him (well, until they destroyed a whole Venetian apartment block), the 6th Bond's first adversary was a world away from the unhinged megalomaniacs his predecessors had locked horns with.

Le Chiffre was the banker to world's terrorists. But, despite being a mathematical genius, he was also a gambler. The only problem was that he liked to gamble with his client's money; given what they did, it probably wasn't the most sensible of decisions.

Because when it goes wrong...

It's the desperation that he displays when his reckless scheme goes awry that sets Le Chiffre apart. Yes - he's charming, and witty. And let's not forget the people whose money he looks after: He may not directly be involved in nefarious schemes himself, but he's enabling the people who are.

However, the battle between him and Bond isn't, outwardly, one about the safety of the world. It's more a personal duel; one man fighting hard not to drown - the other trying to make sure he does.

And, then, when Bond does - seemingly - win, Le Chiffre's retribution is brutal. The level of sadism transcends professional duty; it's personal, it's cruel, and it's motivated by spite. By revenge.

Most of Bond's adversaries treat him as an occupational hazard; if they want to take over / destroy the world, then - inevitably - they have to deal with him. Like or dislike doesn't come into it.

But Le Chiffre hates Bond. This is all very distinctly personal.

Mikkelsen, like many of the actors in this list, is both charismatic, and talented. His performance is nuanced, and then - in the torture scene - genuinely terrifying.

Le Chiffre doesn't have an army of minions at his disposable. He just has one length of knotted rope.

And that makes him one of the scariest individuals 007 ever had to overcome.

1. Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Donald Pleasence) - 'You Only Live Twice' - 1967.

It had to be, didn't it?

Telly Savalas, Charles Grey and Christoph Waltz were all great as Blofeld but, like Christopher Lee, didn't benefit from being so in great films.

Despite the utterly reprehensible racism (Sean Connery as a Japanese fisherman - really?), 'You Only Live Twice' is great.

I mean, ninjas attacking a volcano - how can you not love that?

And one of the reasons for the greatness is Donald Pleasence's Blofeld, the megalomaniac head of the terrorist syndicate, SPECTRE.

It's easy to get lost in the Dr. Evil pastiches. The bald head; the scar; the cat...

But...

Watching the movie again, it's possible to forget all about Mike Meyer's loving homage. Because Pleasence is scary. Properly scary.

I love Donald Pleasence - like Christopher Walken, he had his own distinctive style. Clipped, other-worldly. And, despite being by all accounts a thoroughly decent man, no-one did menace like Donald. Even in 'Halloween', where he plays the 'good-guy', he's only slightly-less frightening than Michael Meyers.

And here, despite only having a relatively small amount of screen-time, Pleasence makes the most out of every second. He's strange, cruel, and utterly evil.

There's a reason why he's number one.

Hopefully, we'll soon be able to see Rami Malek's attempts to join the pantheon of villainy. Malek's a fine actor - if he's given good material, I wouldn't be surprised to see him on such lists in the future.

Either way, 'No Time to Die' will herald the end of Daniel Craig's box-office-busting run as Ian Fleming's 007. If the rumors are to be believed, Tom Hardy has already been cast to don the tuxedo next. Even if that's not true, the franchise will continue: As the producers proudly exclaim at the end of every movie, 'James Bond - 007 - will return.'

And, as long as he does, so will those diabolical, evil, mad villains.

And the cinematic landscape will continue to be a much more entertaining one for it.

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