Families everywhere are excited about the release of the latest James Bond adventure, “No Time to Die,” in which Oscar-winner Rami Malek stacks up against Daniel Craig as the series’ latest villain, Safin.
But before we add him to our list of favorite Bond characters, here’s a look back at some of the baddest villains 007 ever faced down in his half-century-long tenure working on Her Majesty’s Secret Service — which is such a big job it’s required not less than six actors to keep the world safe.
We’ve ranked the 25 best James Bond villains of all time using information sourced from IMDb as well as good-old staff opinions (there were lots!).
25. Nick Nack
Portrayed by: Hervé Villechaize
Film: “The Man With the Golden Gun” (1974)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How He Ranks
The even-sillier follow-up to the zany “Live and Let Die” sees Bond tangling with pint-size henchman Nick Nack, played by Hervé “de plane, de plane!” Villechaize.
Since staging a realistic fight between Bond and a little person would have been in incredibly bad taste, instead Bond does something even worse: He packs poor Nick Nack into a suitcase and tosses him into the sea.
Rather far from woke, James.
24. Francisco Scaramanga
Portrayed by: Christopher Lee
Film: “The Man With the Golden Gun” (1974)
Bond played by: Roger Moore
How He Ranks
The late, great Christopher Lee had quite a career as a go-to, on-screen evildoer, whether it was as Dracula in the Hammer flicks of the 1960s or the dark wizard Saruman in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy. But in between, he still found time to menace James Bond as the titular fellow with a golden-hued firearm.
Lee portrayed Francisco Scaramanga, the world’s most famous assassin (how he got so ranked we’ll never know), who lures Bond into a classic duel to determine which of them will gain control of a device that harnesses energy from the sun.
23. Tee Hee
Portrayed by: Julius Harris
Film: “Live and Let Die” (1973)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How He Ranks
His name may be funny, but muscle-for-hire Tee Hee is hardly the silliest thing about this Bond tale that also features voodoo powers and man-eating crocodiles. Speaking of crocodiles, Tee Hee apparently didn’t pay attention in reptile-handling school because he lost one of his own arms to “Albert,” a croc Tee Hee later uses to threaten our hero James.
But Tee Hee doesn’t need the help of toothy beasts, as he boasts a rather menacing metallic arm thanks to a previous run-in with a rather hungry Albert.
22. Mr. Kidd and Mr. Wint
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. / YouTube
Portrayed by, respectively: Putter Smith and Bruce Glover
Film: “Diamonds Are Forever” (1971)
Bond Played by: Sean Connery
How They Rank
In the 1970s, it was extremely rare to see openly gay characters in popular culture, which is likely part of why “Diamonds Are Forever” pushed quite a few buttons in its day. (This was also the same movie where a topless Plenty O’Toole was tossed from a hotel balcony by a bad guy.) While their sexuality adds absolutely nothing to the plot, the killers Mr. Kidd and Mr. Wint don’t let their proclivities sneak up on the audience: In an early scene, right after murdering a man by putting a scorpion in the back of his shirt, they walk offscreen hand in hand.
A half-century later, gender studies classes would have a field day breaking this down, but whatever their orientation, Kidd and Wint certainly caused enough murderous mayhem to land them in the top 25.
21. Dr. Kanaga/Mr. Big
Portrayed by: Yaphet Kotto
Film: “Live and Let Die” (1973)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How He Ranks
Somebody was holding henchman Tee Hee’s chain, and it was none other than drug kingpin Dr. Kanaga. Kanaga was the de facto dictator of a fictional Caribbean island and was also one of the first of far too many fictional people to go by “Mr. Big,” a tradition that has carried on right into the “Sex and the City” universe.
In an effort to rule the drug trade beyond just his island, Kanaga/Mr. Big’s scheme was to deluge the U.S. drug market with cheap heroin and become the big cheese of the trade. Bond and MI6 only get involved after a few British spies turn up dead while investigating this “big” plan.
20. Elektra King
Portrayed by: Sophie Marceau
Film: “The World Is Not Enough” (1999)
Bond Played by: Pierce Brosnan
How She Ranks
Who says only men get to be bad guys? Sure, Elektra King is extremely beautiful and catnip to a playboy like Bond, but because this is a spy flick, he still needs to watch his back. Turns out the billionaire heiress is not only in cahoots with the terrorist known as Renard (Robert Carlyle), she actually (dun dun dun) was behind a plot to murder her own father. (Thus the name Elektra is far from a coincidence.)
Things go from bad to worse when Elektra kidnaps M, forcing Bond to choose between his boss and his current fling. (No points for a correct guess.)
19. Miss Taro
Portrayed by: Zena Marshall
Film: “Dr. No” (1962)
Bond Played by: Sean Connery
How She Ranks
When the spy franchise debuted in cinemas in 1962, the titular Dr. No had plenty of help in the antagonist department, including the sexy but nefarious Miss Taro, who was sent by Dr. No as a “honey trap” to get Bond into bed, at which point he would be assassinated.
Even though things don’t go according to that plan, Bond still enjoys a few steamy nights with Taro (even after uncovering her dirty little secret). That’s our James!
18. Le Chiffre
Portrayed by: Mads Mikkelsen
Film: “Casino Royale” (2006)
Bond Played by: Daniel Craig
How He Ranks
Not to be confused with the 007 spoof of the same name from 1967, 2006’s “Casino Royale” introduced the world to a darker, more ruthless Bond in the guise of Daniel Craig. “Casino Royale” actually took some time to explore the darkest aspects of what makes a spy tick, and the seeming cognitive dissonance required to murder people for queen and country.
But this new Bond meets his match in Le Chiffre, a sadistic card player played by Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen. Bond needed more than a good hand at Baccarat to defeat this psychopath.
17. Oddjob
Portrayed by: Harold Sakata
Film: “Goldfinger” (1964)
Bond Played by: Sean Connery
How He Ranks
When you need someone dispatched in a particularly creative way, it’s time to call in Oddjob! This lackey of Auric Goldfinger had a rather advanced tophat at his command, which, when tossed through the air, had the strength to take the head off any poor schlub who got in its path.
And if that sounds at all familiar, it’s because the character was later memorably lampooned as “Random Task” in the first Austin Powers flick.
16. Hugo Drax
Portrayed by: Michael Lonsdale
Film: “Moonraker” (1979)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How He Ranks
Given the ascendancy of both “Star Wars” and “Star Trek,” it was inevitable that James Bond would eventually head to outer space, too. “Moonraker” is unquestionably kind of doltish, but it can’t be denied that the French-born actor Michael Lonsdale (who recently passed away) gave the movie some credibility in the villianois Sir Hugo Drax.
Drax was the Elon Musk of his day, owning several private space shuttles, but more than that, he’s a major misanthrope and wants to use space-based weaponry to destroy all but a select few humans. Don’t get any ideas, Elon!
15. Brad Whitaker
Portrayed by: Joe Don Baker
Film: “The Living Daylights” (1987)
Bond Played by: Timothy Dalton
How He Ranks
Timothy Dalton only lasted two films, but it wasn’t his fault that his Bond exploits took the brand in a direction that was less fun and way more gritty — probably as a way to compete with other action franchises of the time such as “Die Hard” and “Lethal Weapon.” Dalton’s first outing, “The Living Daylights,” features both a sled ride on a cello case and even exploding milk bombs (yeah, you read that right), but all told, it’s not really as bad as you’ve heard.
However, the end shootout between Bond and arms dealer Brad Whitaker does the film no favors, as Baker actually uses a plastic face shield to deflect bullets from Bond’s Walther PPK pistol.
Fun bit of trivia: Actor Joe Don Baker later returned to the series in the Pierce Brosnan era, but this time as an entirely different character called Jack Wade, a CIA agent who helps Bond.
14. May Day
Portrayed by: Grace Jones
Film: “A View to a Kill” (1985)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How She Ranks
Grace Jones is not only a great singer, but she thoroughly kicks butt in films like “Conan the Destroyer” and Roger Moore’s final outing as 007, “A View to a Kill.” Jones’ May Day starts out the story as a rather bad girl, but upon realizing she was on the wrong side, she sacrifices herself near the end to save not only Bond but thousands of innocent people from a bomb made to destroy a dam.
See, people can change.
13. Karl Stromberg
Portrayed by: Curd Jürgens
Film: “The Spy Who Loved Me” (1977)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How He Ranks
Karl Stromberg really is an uber-villain. Not only does he live in a floating city called Atlantis, but he’s also out to fashion a new world order thanks to stolen nukes from captured Soviet and British submarines.
Not so fast, says our hero, who must send Stromberg’s dastardly scheme — and his floating city — to Davy Jones’ Locker post-haste.
12. Naomi
Portrayed by: Caroline Munro
Film: “The Spy Who Loved Me” (1977)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How She Ranks
Even uber-villains like Karl Stromberg can’t take over the world without hired help. And to aid his vile fantasies, the “Spy Who Loved Me” employed the vivacious and salacious chopper pilot Naomi, who chases Bond from the skies above Italy in the climax.
Naomi is notable not only for her beauty and intelligence, but for being the first woman Bond definitively kills in the entire series, dispatching her with a flippant remark that it was time to “say goodbye to an uninvited guest.”
That’s cold even by spy standards!
11. Alec Trevelyan
Portrayed by: Sean Bean
Film: “GoldenEye” (1995)
Bond Played by: Pierce Brosnan
How He Ranks
Everything old was once new, and so it was in 1995 when new-to-the-franchise Pierce Brosnan took on — you guessed it — a rogue MI6 agent. As Alec “006” Trevelyan, Sean Bean brought his penchant for villain naughtiness to the proceedings, even chuckling his way through betraying Bond to the bad guys and then trying to capture a powerful space ray called GoldenEye. (The name was borrowed from Bond author Ian Fleming’s home in Jamaica.)
Things didn’t turn out well for Trevelyan, but Sean Bean has since made a career of being cinema’s go-to bad guy (except, of course, in “Game of Thrones.”)
10. Xenia Onatopp
Portrayed by: Famke Janssen
Film: “GoldenEye” (1995)
Bond played by: Pierce Brosnan
How She Ranks
Part of the fun of the series is chuckling at how the writers came up with names for Bond’s paramours and female nemeses that were absolutely steeped in double entendres. This trope had been largely retired until “GoldenEye,” when newly minted 007 Pierce Brosnan took on the Russian mafia, 006 and a rather feisty killer named Xenia Onatopp.
“Onatopp?” he says when hearing her name for the first time. This is no more subtle than Holly Goodhead, Pussy Galore, Plenty O’Toole and Octopussy, who have all shared in Bond’s, uh, “exploits” over the years.
And fortunately for Janssen, the moviegoing public knew a good thing when it saw one, and the Dutch actress has been a mainstay on Hollywood screens ever since, notably as Jean Grey in the “X-Men” franchise.
9. Dr. No
Portrayed by: Joseph Wiseman
Film: “Dr. No” (1962)
Bond Played by: Sean Connery
How He Ranks
When “Dr. No” first debuted in Japan, the title was mistranslated as “We Don’t Need a Doctor!” and thus box office returns weren’t exactly stellar. Remember, this was the first Bond flick, so even putting “007” on the marquee likely couldn’t have helped this 1962 film find its audience then. What did help it was Dr. No himself, who was out to sabotage the launch of an American satellite in the hopes of starting World War III.
We definitely never need that kind of doctor.
8. Emilio Largo
Eon Productions
Portrayed by: Adolfo Celi
Film: “Thunderball” (1965)
Bond Played by: Sean Connery
How He Ranks
Isn’t there some rule in movies that anyone with an eye patch is up to no good? That was certainly the case with Emilio Largo, who not only has a private shark tank to dispose of underperforming minions but has risen up through the ranks of baddies to become the No. 2 of S.P.E.C.T.R.E.
With two stolen nuclear warheads in his clutches, Largo was all set to press the red button until 007, aided by Bond girl Domino (Claudine Auger), chased him down and dispatched the evil cyclops to kingdom come.
“Thunderball” was actually remade in 1983 as the non-canon film “Never Say Never Again,” with Connery reprising the role for the final time.
7. Franz Sanchez
Portrayed by: Robert Davi
Film: “License to Kill” (1989)
Bond Played by: Timothy Dalton
How He Ranks
This time, it’s personal for Bond, who turns in his badge to go after the vicious drug lord Sanchez, whose forces were responsible for ordering a hit on James’ pal from the CIA, Felix Leiter (David Hedison). Although Leiter “walks” away from being lowered into a shark pit having only lost one leg (what is it with these bad guys and shark tanks?), his new wife Della (Priscilla Barnes) isn’t so lucky.
Thus Bond, stripped of his credentials by MI6, poses as a hitman to infiltrate Sanchez’s organization and exact some serious revenge on his own. It all leads up to a rather shocking climax that rightly made this the first Bond flick to be rated PG-13.
6. Raoul Silva
Portrayed by: Javier Bardem
Film: “Skyfall” (2012)
Bond Played by: Daniel Craig
How He Ranks
They say you can never go home again, which may be why the ending of “Skyfall” — in which James Bond returns to his childhood home in Scotland to face down an army of bad guys — was so memorable (never mind that it led to inevitable comparisons to “Home Alone”).
And leading the charge of the evil ones was Javier Bardem’s Silva, a rogue MI6 agent with a grudge against M (Judi Dench) and, it must be said, a bit of a crush on 007 (watch closely).
5. Max Zorin
Portrayed by: Christopher Walken
Film: “A View to a Kill” (1985)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How He Ranks
The joke goes that Christopher Walken could make us laugh just by reading the dictionary, and never was he more unintentionally hilarious than as Max Zorin, a maniac industrialist who’s out to flood Silicon Valley to give himself a worldwide monopoly on producing microchips — or something.
It must be said that Walken goes for broke and never takes the material seriously. At one point, he even wastes a roomful of guys with a machine gun while chuckling the whole time. And that’s before he fights Bond on a blimp that gets stuck on one of the towers of the Golden Gate Bridge.
Fortunately, the film has a pretty good song by Duran Duran to leaven out the zaniness even a little. “A View to a Kill” was Moore’s seventh, and last, turn as Bond, with Timothy Dalton taking over two years later.
4. Auric Goldfinger
Portrayed by: Gert Fröbe
Film: “Goldfinger” (1965)
Bond Played by: Sean Connery
How He Ranks
While the actual plot of “Goldfinger” is a bit inane — Goldfinger wants to irradiate all of the gold in Fort Knox — it’s still considered one of the best entries in the franchise. That’s not only because of infamous Bond girl Pussy Galore (Honor Blackman) but Auric Goldfinger himself, who, in the film’s most memorable moment, ties 007 to a table, with a laser gradually making its way up toward Bond’s nether regions.
Which leads to arguably the most famous exchange in Bond-dom:
“Do you expect me to talk?”
“No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die!”
3. Donald “Red” Grant
Portrayed by: Robert Shaw
Films: “From Russia With Love” (1963)
Bond Played by: Sean Connery
How He Ranks
You knew and loved Robert Shaw for playing Captain Quint, the salty New England angler out to hook a particularly nasty great white shark in “Jaws,” but long before he set sail for Amity Island, the classically trained Shakespearean actor tangled with 007 in Bond’s second-ever, on-screen adventure.
The end fight of “From Russia With Love” is epic, as Bond and Grant duke it out inside a moving train car that will keep you on the edge of your seat — and make you forgo Amtrak for a while.
And speaking of that aforementioned shark’s tale…
2. Jaws
Portrayed by: Richard Kiel
Films: “The Spy Who Loved Me” (1977) and “Moonraker” (1979)
Bond Played by: Roger Moore
How He Ranks
The actor Richard Kiel was over 7-feet tall, had a basso profundo voice that shook walls and menaced Bond in not one but two of his 1970s missions. So popular was the steel-toothed bad guy among fans of “The Spy Who Loved Me” that he was brought back for “Moonraker,” where he memorably turns from heel to hero to help Bond escape from an exploding space station.
“His name’s Jaws; he kills people,” spoken by Moore in “Moonraker,” still makes us smile long after Kiel’s death in 2014, with Moore following him into the great unknown in 2017.
1. Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Portrayed by: Anthony Dawson, Telly Savales, Donald Pleasence, Charles Gray, John Hollis, Max von Sydow, Christoph Waltz
Films: “From Russia With Love” (1963), “Thunderball” (1965), “You Only Live Twice” (1967), “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” (1969), “Diamonds Are Forever” (1971), “For Your Eyes Only” (1981), “Never Say Never Again” (1983), “Spectre” (2015)
Bond Played by: Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Daniel Craig
How He Ranks
As the head of S.P.E.C.T.R.E., Ernst Stavro Blofeld has made life hell for James Bond time and time again. So mysterious was he that, in his first few film appearances, Blofeld’s face was never seen; rather he was viewed from behind, always stroking his favorite white cat. But ever since “You Only Live Twice,” Blofeld, in his various incarnations, has been front and center in his world-dominating schemes, and sporting his signature bald head and facial scar (all of which was memorably parodied as the bumbling Dr. Evil in the “Austin Powers” films).
But as much as you love to hate Blofeld, keep in mind that he’s done some pretty awful things, such as killing Bond’s new bride in the underrated “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service,” the one and only film to star George Lazenby as 007.
When the most recent Bond pic, 2015’s “Spectre,” came out, rumors turned out to be true that the real identity of that film’s Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz) was in fact Blofeld himself. But he was seen only briefly, with promises of more diabolical mayhem to come from Ernie in the forthcoming “No Time to Die.”
Whenever we get to finally see “No Time to Die,” Blofeld will be there once again to mock Bond with that unplaceable Middle European accent. But will he be back when Daniel Craig officially turns over the reins of the character to Tom Hardy sometime later this decade?
As Bond himself might say, while downing a martini, “We shall see.”
