Few film series have had the longevity and cultural impact of James Bond – the saga of the suave British super-spy who’s spent nearly seven decades on the big screen, thwarting megalomaniacal baddies, swigging vodka martinis, and travelling the globe (while occasionally blasting off to space). Across multiple eras, several re-castings, and against a rapidly-changing backdrop of cultural, societal and technological shifts, 007 has endured – and to celebrate the upcoming No Time To Die, Empire commemorates the entire James Bond series with the new Bond: The Ultimate Celebration magazine.
The 56-page mag, which comes bundled with Empire’s The Mandalorian issue, is the ultimate read for 007 fanatics – a deep dive into everything that makes Bond, well, Bond. It all kicks off with an exclusive introduction from No Time To Die director Cary Joji Fukunaga, who writes about his love of the series and his upcoming contribution, Daniel Craig’s final outing in the tux. Plus, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson open up the Eon archives to unearth rare behind-the-scenes images from across the series, and there are brand new interviews with a slew of Bond directors (including John Glen, Martin Campbell, Michael Apted, Marc Forster and Lee Tamahori).
But that’s not all. We have Sam Mendes and the Spectre team on how they pulled off that incredible Day Of The Dead opening sequence, the story behind John Barry and Shirley Bassey’s Goldfinger song, a breakdown of the Casino Royale title sequence that introduced a new 007 to the world, the origins of the Bond movie in Dr. No, a Blofeld blow-by-blow on the ultimate villain, a look at the changing role of the ‘Bond girl’, a schematic of the You Only Live Twice volcano lair, a revisit of the all-out ‘80s madness of A View To A Kill, the tale of the explosive tanker chase in License To Kill, and a look at the classic posters from every Bond movie.
It’s the ultimate read for James Bond fans, full of incredible stories, unseen photos, and exclusive interviews sure to leave you shaken and stirred. Find it on sale with Empire’s The Mandalorian issue on newsstands from Thursday 20 February.
