Smash hit

“But that’s how the series started,” says Wilson. “They started making real movies, and they hired great actors. And that’s why they’re considered classics.” “They set a standard,” continues Broccoli. “We’ve just tried to maintain that standard. Some were better than others. But I think that this one just happens to be great.”

And even if it flops, at least you’ve got the critical community on your side.

“Oh don’t say that,” they groan in unison. “That could be our death knell!”

BOND BY ANY OTHER NAME: THE SPIES WE ALSO LOVED

THE BOURNE IDENTITY
(Doug Liman, 2002)

Matt Damon is the CIA-trained superspy Jason Bourne. He’s a lethal killing machine with multiple passports, personal vendettas and a glamorous Eurobabe on his arm. He lacks Bond’s sense of panache, though, and prefers hoodies and head-butts to formal dinner wear and vodka martinis.

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE II
(John Woo, 2000)

Clearly the Bond-iest of the Mission: Impossible flicks. This one has a sneering super-villain (Dougray Scott) obsessed with stock-market manipulation and the murder of entire populations. And only one globe-trotting undercover agent (Tom Cruise) can stop him.

THE SUM OF ALL FEARS
(Phil Alden Robinson, 2002)

As in Casino Royale, this spy movie took an iconic spy (CIA poster boy Jack Ryan, played by Ben Affleck) back to basics. Duly preposterous plotting depicts an attempt to provoke war between the US and Russia by exploding a nuclear device during the Super Bowl.

XXX
(Rob Cohen, 2002)

Oh dear. A Russian crime syndicate is planning the destruction of the planet. The fate of six billion people hangs in the balance. And what does the US Government do? It sends in a snowboarding dolt called Xander Cage (Vin Diesel), or “xXx”, as he’s known to his stoner buddies. Yay!

STORMBREAKER
(Geoffrey Sax, 2006)

Amid rampant rumours that Broccoli and Co were about to shoot a Young James Bond movie, Harvey Weinstein produced this irreverent adaptation of Anthony Horowitz’s best-seller. The budget was tiny ($40 million), the locations non-existent (the Isle of Man?) but the gadgets made it Bond in spirit.

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