No Time to Die serves as the capstone to Daniel Craig’s five-film run as James Bond. It’s been nearly 15 years since Casino Royale was released, so you’d be forgiven for forgetting all the characters and plots that took place along the way if you haven’t recently done a series rewatch. Luckily, you don’t even need to have seen all the previous Craig films to enjoy No Time to Die, though you might miss some of the callbacks or the significance of some of the characters and story beats.
This primer will help jog your memory or catch you up on the 007 lore that’s relevant in No Time to Die. While there are no spoilers for the latest film, this story does contain major reveals from the rest of the series! (And be sure to read our No Time to Die review when you're done here, and check out our ending explained once you've seen the movie…)
Who Is Mr. White?
Jesper Christensen played the assassin also known as the Pale King in Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace and Spectre. White was part of the global evil organization Spectre, but was poisoned for opposing its leader. Before killing himself, he gave Bond information needed to take down Spectre and tasked him with taking care of his daughter, Madeleine Swann.
Who Is Léa Seydoux’s Madeleine Swann?
Played by Léa Seydoux, Madeleine is a psychiatrist who Bond met in Spectre when she was working in a remote clinic in the Austrian Alps to escape from her father. Mr. White taught Madeleine some of his trade, and she told Bond in Spectre that she once used a gun hidden in her home to shoot a man who had come after her father. She is in love with Bond and the two of them rode off together at the end of Spectre.
What Is Spectre?
The evil organization Spectre is featured in the Ian Fleming novels that served as the basis for the James Bond franchise and has also appeared in numerous Bond films. They are responsible for crimes and terrorist attacks around the world and are masters of surveillance and spycraft.
Who Is Christoph Waltz’s Blofeld?
Another major part of Fleming’s books and earlier Bond films, Ernst Stavro Blofeld was played by Christoph Waltz in Spectre. He was born Franz Oberhauser and lived with Bond for a while after Bond’s parents died when he was a young child and Hannes Oberhauser became his guardian. Franz became jealous of the close relationship James was forming with his father, thinking of James as a parasitic cuckoo bird.
Franz killed his father and faked his own death, taking on the name Blofeld and forming Spectre. He claims to have been the architect of every tragedy Bond has experienced since they met. He lost his eye and gained a nasty scar in an explosion Bond caused in Spectre, and was captured at the end of that film.
Who Is M?
M is the codename given to the head of MI6. The role belonged to Judi Dench in the first three Craig films (and the Pierce Brosnan films before that), but her character was killed in Skyfall. The job then went to Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes), who had previously been chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee. Bond has a much more contentious relationship with this M than he had with his former boss before she died.
Who Is Q?
Ben Whishaw plays MI6’s quartermaster, who is responsible for equipping Bond and other 00 agents with a license to kill with all manner of gadgets. Notable inventions include sports cars outfitted with impressive weaponry and defensive capabilities and smart blood, a nanite technology that can be used to track the status of agents anywhere around the world. He has shown a willingness to help Bond even when it involves bucking the will of his superiors.
Who Is Moneypenny?
Eve Moneypenny (Naomie Harris) is an MI6 agent who first appeared in the opening of Skyfall. She accidentally shot Bond while aiming for a mercenary who had stolen information on MI6’s agents. After Mallory took over MI6, Moneypenny left fieldwork and became his assistant.
Who Is Vesper Lynd?
Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) was a British Treasury agent who provided the money for Bond’s mission in Casino Royale. She helped save Bond from being poisoned at the high-stakes poker tournament he was playing in, and he in turn tried to rescue her when she was kidnapped. They fell in love and were going to run away together before Bond learned that Vesper had stolen his winnings from the tournament. He tried to stop her from turning the money over to Mr. White, and Vesper drowned in the fight that followed, locking herself in an elevator that was submerged in the Grand Canal of Venice in order to prevent Bond from saving her. After learning that Vesper became a double agent to save his life, Bond spent Quantum of Solace trying to avenge her, and she has seemingly never been far from his mind since.
Who Is Felix Leiter?
Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) is a CIA operative who first worked with Bond in Casino Royale and also appeared in Quantum of Solace. Bond considers him a brother in arms.
What is your favorite Daniel Craig Bond movie? Do you have any questions you’d like to see No Time to Die answer? Let us know in the comments!
