| Never Say Never Again | |
|---|---|
 British cinema poster byRenato Casaro | |
| Directed by | Irvin Kershner |
| Screenplay by | Lorenzo Semple Jr. |
| Story by | |
| Based on | Thunderball by Ian Fleming |
| Produced by | Jack Schwartzman |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Douglas Slocombe |
| Edited by | Ian Crafford |
| Music by | Michel Legrand |
Production company | Taliafilm |
| Distributed by |
|
Release dates |
|
Running time | 134 minutes |
| Countries | |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $36 million |
| Box office | $160 million[3] |
Never Say Never Again is a 1983spy film directed byIrvin Kershner. The film is based on the 1961James Bond novelThunderball byIan Fleming, which in turn was based on an original story byKevin McClory,Jack Whittingham, and Fleming. The novel had been previously adapted as the 1965 filmThunderball.Never Say Never Again is the second and most recentJames Bond film not to be produced byEon Productions (the usual producer of the Bond series) but instead byJack Schwartzman's Taliafilm, and was distributed byWarner Bros. The film was executive produced by Kevin McClory, one of the original writers of theThunderball storyline. McClory had retained the filming rights of the novel following along legal battle dating from the 1960s.
Sean Connery played the role of Bond for the seventh and final time, marking his return to the character twelve years afterDiamonds Are Forever (1971). The film's title is a reference to Connery's reported declaration in 1971 that he would "never again" play that role. As Connery was 52 at the time of filming, the script makes frequent reference to Bond as aging and past his prime – although Connery was three years younger than his replacement,Roger Moore. The storyline features Bond being reluctantly brought back into action to investigate the theft of two nuclear weapons bySPECTRE. Filming locations included France, Spain, the Bahamas andElstree Studios in the United Kingdom.
Never Say Never Again was released byWarner Bros. on 7 October 1983, and opened to positive reviews. The film grossed $160 million at the box office, making it a commercial success, although it earned less overall than the Eon-producedOctopussy, released earlier the same year.
AfterMI6 agent James Bond fails a routine training exercise, his superiorM orders him to a health clinic outside London to get back into shape. While there, Bond witnesses nurse Fatima Blush giving asadomasochistic beating to a patient in a nearby room. The man's face is bandaged and after Blush finishes her beating, he uses a machine whichscans his eye. Bond is spotted by Blush, who sends assassin Lippe to kill him in the clinic gym. Bond kills Lippe in a fight which destroys a lot of the clinic's furniture and equipment; M is forced to pay for the resulting damages and consequently suspends Bond from active duty.
Blush works forSPECTRE, a criminal organisation run byErnst Stavro Blofeld; her charge isheroin-addictedUnited States Air Force pilot Jack Petachi. Petachi has undergone an operation on his right eye to make it match theretinal pattern of theUS President, which he uses to circumvent security at RAF Station Swadley, anAmerican military base in England. While doing so, he replaces the dummywarheads of twoAGM-86Bcruise missiles with liveW80 nuclear warheads; SPECTRE then steals the warheads, intending to extort billions of dollars fromNATO governments. Blush murders Petachi by causing his car to crash and explode, covering SPECTRE's tracks.
Foreign Secretary Lord Ambrose orders a reluctant M to reactivate thedouble-0 section, and Bond is tasked with tracking down the missing weapons. Bond follows a lead to theBahamas and findsDomino Petachi, Jack's sister, and her wealthy lover Maximillian Largo, who is SPECTRE's top agent.
When Largo's yacht heads forNice, France, Bond goes there and joins forces with his French contact Nicole, and hisCIA counterpart,Felix Leiter. Bond goes to a health and beauty centre, posing as an employee. He gives a massage to Domino, who reveals that Largo is hosting an event at a casino that evening. At the charity event, Largo and Bond play a video game calledDomination; the losing player of each turn receiveselectric shocks of increasing intensity in proportion to the amount wagered. After losing a few games, Bond wins, and while dancing with Domino, he informs her that Jack had been killed on Largo's orders. Returning to his villa, Bond finds Nicole killed by Blush. After achase on his Q-branch motorbike, Bond finds himself in an ambush and is captured by Blush. She admits to being impressed with him, and forces Bond to declare in writing that she is his "Number One" sexual partner. Bond distracts her with promises, then uses his Q-branch fountainpen gun to kill Blush with an explosive dart.
Bond and Leiter attempt to board Largo's yacht, theFlying Saucer, in search of the missing nuclear warheads. Bond finds Domino and attempts to make Largo jealous by kissing her in front of aone-way mirror. Enraged, Largo traps Bond and takes him and Domino to Palmyra, Largo's base of operations inNorth Africa. Largo punishes Domino for her betrayal by selling her to passing Arabs. Bond escapes from his prison and rescues her.
Domino and Bond reunite with Leiter on aU.S. Navy submarine. After the first warhead is found and defused in Washington, D.C., they track Largo to the Tears of Allah, a location below a desertoasis on theEthiopian coast. Bond and Leiter infiltrate the underground facility and a gun battle erupts between Leiter's team and Largo's men in the temple. In the confusion, Largo makes a getaway with the second warhead. Bond catches and fights him underwater. Just as Largo tries to use a spear gun to shoot Bond, he is shot with a spear gun by Domino, taking revenge for Jack's death. Bond then defuses the nuclear bomb underwater, saving the world. Bond retires from duty and returns to the Bahamas with Domino, vowing never again to be a secret agent although Domino doubts his sincerity.
Never Say Never Again had its origins in the early 1960s, following thecontroversy over the 1961Thunderball novel.[4] Fleming had worked with independent producer Kevin McClory and scriptwriter Jack Whittingham on a script for a potential Bond film, to be calledLongitude 78 West,[5] which was subsequently abandoned because of the costs involved.[6] Fleming, "always reluctant to let a good idea lie idle",[6] turned this into the novelThunderball, for which he did not credit either McClory or Whittingham;[7] McClory then took Fleming to theHigh Court in London for breach of copyright,[8] and the matter was settled in 1963.[5] AfterEon Productions started producing the Bond films, it subsequently made a deal with McClory, who would produceThunderball, and then not make any further version of the novel for a period of ten years, following the release of the Eon-produced version in 1965.[9]
In the mid-1970s, McClory again started working on a second adaptation ofThunderball and, with the working titleWarhead, he brought writerLen Deighton together with Sean Connery to work on a script.[10] A lawsuit with Eon Productions ended in a ruling that McClory owned the sole rights to SPECTRE and Blofeld, forcing Eon to remove them fromThe Spy Who Loved Me (1977).[11] The script initially focused on SPECTRE shooting down aircraft over theBermuda Triangle, before taking overLiberty Island andEllis Island as staging areas for an invasion ofNew York City through the sewers underWall Street. The script was purchased byParamount Pictures in 1978.[11] The script ran into difficulties, after accusations fromDanjaq andUnited Artists that the project had gone beyond copyright restrictions, which confined McClory to a film based only on the novelThunderball; once again, the project was delayed.[9]
Towards the end of the 1970s, developments were reported on the project under the nameJames Bond of the Secret Service,[9] but when producerJack Schwartzman became involved in 1980, and cleared a number of the legal issues that still surrounded the project,[11][4] he decided against using Deighton's script. The project returned to the original nuclear terrorism plot of the originalThunderball, in order to avoid another lawsuit from Danjaq, and after McClory sawJimmy Carter mention the issue in a1980 presidential debate withRonald Reagan.[12] Schwartzman brought on board scriptwriterLorenzo Semple, Jr.[13] to work on the screenplay. Schwartzman wanted him to make the screenplay "somewhere in the middle" between his campier projects such asBatman, and his more serious projects such asThree Days of the Condor.[11] Connery was unhappy with some aspects of the script, and askedTom Mankiewicz, who had rewrittenDiamonds Are Forever, to work on it; however, Mankiewicz declined, as he felt he was under a moral obligation toAlbert R. Broccoli.[14] Semple Jr. ultimately left the project, after Irvin Kershner was hired as director, and Schwartzman began cutting out the "big numbers" from his script to save on the budget.[11] Connery then hired British television writersDick Clement andIan La Frenais[12] to undertake re-writes, although they went uncredited for their efforts, despite much of the final shooting script being theirs. This was because of a restriction by theWriters Guild of America.[15] Clement and La Frenais continued rewriting during the production, often altering it from day to day.[11]
The film underwent one final change in title: after Connery had finished filmingDiamonds Are Forever, he had pledged that he would "never again" play Bond.[10] Connery's wife, Micheline, suggested the titleNever Say Never Again, referring to her husband's vow,[16] and the producers acknowledged her contribution by listing on the end credits "TitleNever Say Never Again by Micheline Connery". A final attempt by Fleming's trustees to block the film was made in the High Court in London in the spring of 1983, but this was thrown out by the court andNever Say Never Again was permitted to proceed.[17]
When producer Kevin McClory had first planned the film in 1964, he held initial talks withRichard Burton for the part of Bond,[18] although the project came to nothing because of the legal issues involved. When theWarhead project was launched in the late 1970s, a number of actors were mentioned in the trade press, includingOrson Welles for the part of Blofeld,Trevor Howard to play M andRichard Attenborough as director.[10]
In 1978, the working titleJames Bond of the Secret Service was being used and Connery was in the frame once again, potentially going head-to-head with the next Eon Bond film,Moonraker.[19] By 1980, with legal issues again causing the project to founder,[20] Connery thought himself unlikely to play the role, as he stated in an interview in theSunday Express: "When I first worked on the script with Len I had no thought of actually being in the film."[21] When producer Jack Schwartzman became involved, he asked Connery to play Bond; Connery agreed, negotiating a fee of $3 million ($9 million in 2024 dollars[22]), casting and script approval, and a percentage of the profits.[23] Subsequent to Connery reprising the role, Semple altered the script to include several references to Bond's advancing years – playing on Connery being 52 at the time of filming[23] – and academic Jeremy Black has pointed out that there are other aspects of age and disillusionment in the film, such as the Shrubland's porter referring to Bond's car ("They don't make them like that anymore"), the new M having no use for the 00 section and Q with his reduced budgets.[24] Originally, Semple wanted to emphasize Bond's age even further, writing the script to include him in semi-retirement working aboard aScottishfishing trawler huntingSoviet Navysubmarines in theNorth Sea.[11] Connery's casting was formally announced in March 1983.[dubious –discuss]. He trained withSteven Seagal to help get in shape for the production.[11]
For the main villain in the film, Maximillian Largo, Connery suggested Klaus Maria Brandauer, the lead of the 1981Academy Award-winning Hungarian filmMephisto.[25] Through the same route cameMax von Sydow as Ernst Stavro Blofeld,[26] although he still retained his Eon-originated white cat in the film.[27] For thefemme fatale, director Irvin Kershner selected former model andPlayboy cover girlBarbara Carrera to play Fatima Blush – the name coming from one of the early scripts ofThunderball.[15] Carrera said she modeled her performance on theHindu goddessKali, and to "mix that in with a little bit ofblack widow and a little bit ofpraying mantis."[11] Carrera's performance as Fatima Blush earned her aGolden Globe Award nomination forBest Supporting Actress,[28] which she lost toCher for her role inSilkwood.[29]Micheline Connery, Sean's wife, had met up-and-coming actress Kim Basinger at theGrosvenor House Hotel in London and suggested her to Connery; he agreed after Dalila Di Lazzaro refused the Domino role. For the role of Felix Leiter, Connery spoke with Bernie Casey, saying that, as the Leiter role was never remembered by audiences, using a black Leiter might make him more memorable.[25] Others cast included comedianRowan Atkinson, who would later parody Bond in his role ofJohnny English in 2003.[30] Atkinson's character was added by Clement and La Frenais after the production had already started, in order to provide the film with a comic relief.[11] Edward Fox was cast as M in order to portray the character as a young technocrat in contrast to the older portrayal byBernard Lee, and to parody theThatcher ministry's budget cuts to government services.[11]
Connery wanted to persuadeRichard Donner to direct the film, but after their meeting, Donner decided he disliked the script.[11] Former Eon Productions' editor and director ofOn Her Majesty's Secret Service,Peter R. Hunt, was approached to direct the film, but declined due to his previous work with Eon.[31] Irvin Kershner, who had previously worked with Connery onA Fine Madness (1966), and had achieved success in 1980 withThe Empire Strikes Back, was then hired. A number of the crew from the 1981 filmRaiders of the Lost Ark were also appointed, including first assistant directorDavid Tomblin,director of photographyDouglas Slocombe, second unit directorMickey Moore andproduction designers Philip Harrison andStephen Grimes.[25][32]
Filming forNever Say Never Again began on 27 September 1982 on theFrench Riviera for two months,[15] before moving toNassau, the Bahamas in mid-November,[13] where filming took place at Clifton Pier, which was also one of the locations used inThunderball.[33] Largo's Palmyran fortress was actually historicFort Carré inAntibes.[34] Largo's ship, theFlying Saucer, was portrayed by the yachtKingdom 5KR, then owned by Saudi billionaireAdnan Khashoggi and calledNabila.[35] The underwater scenes were filmed byRicou Browning, who had coordinated the underwater scenes in the originalThunderball.[11] Principal photography finished atElstree Studios, where interior shots were filmed.[33] Elstree also housed the Tears of Allah underwater cavern, which took three months to construct, while the Shrublands health spa was filmed atLuton Hoo.[33][11] Most of the filming was completed in the spring of 1983, although there was some additional shooting during the summer of 1983.[13]
Production on the film was troubled,[36] with Connery taking on many of the production duties with assistant director David Tomblin.[33] Director Irvin Kershner was critical of producer Jack Schwartzman, saying that, while he was a good businessman, "he didn't have the experience of a film producer".[33] After the production ran out of money, Schwartzman had to fund further production out of his own pocket, and later admitted he had underestimated the amount the film would cost to make.[36] There was tension on set between Schwartzman and Connery, who at times barely spoke to each other. Connery was unimpressed with the perceived lack of professionalism behind the scenes, and was on record as saying that the whole production was a "bloodyMickey Mouse operation!"[37]
Steven Seagal, who was a martial arts instructor for this film, broke Connery's wrist while training. On an episode ofThe Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Connery revealed he did not know his wrist was broken until over a decade later.[38]
James Horner was both Kershner's and Schwartzman's first choice to compose the score, after they were impressed with his work onStar Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Horner, who worked in London for most of the time, was unavailable, according to Kershner, though Schwartzman later claimed Sean Connery vetoed him. Frequent Bond composerJohn Barry was invited, but declined out of loyalty to Eon.[39] The music forNever Say Never Again was ultimately written byMichel Legrand, who composed a score similar to his work as ajazz pianist.[40] The score has been criticised as "anachronistic and misjudged",[33] "bizarrely intermittent"[32] and "the most disappointing feature of the film".[25] Legrand also wrote the main theme "Never Say Never Again", which featured lyrics byAlan and Marilyn Bergman — who had also worked with Legrand on the Academy Award-winning song "The Windmills of Your Mind"[41] — and was performed byLani Hall[25] afterBonnie Tyler, who disliked the song, had reluctantly declined.[42]
Phyllis Hyman also recorded a potential theme song, with music written by Stephen Forsyth and lyrics by Jim Ryan, but the song — an unsolicited submission — was passed over, given Legrand's contractual obligations with the music.[43]
Many of the elements of the Eon-produced Bond films were not present inNever Say Never Again for legal reasons. These included thegun barrel sequence, where a screen full of 007 symbols appeared instead, and similarly there was no "James Bond Theme" to use, although no effort was made to supply another tune.[13] A pre-credits sequence was filmed but not used;[44] instead, the film opens with the credits running over the top of the sequence of Bond on a training mission.[33]
Never Say Never Again opened on 7 October 1983 in 1,550 theatres, grossing an October record $10,958,157 over the four-dayColumbus Day weekend,[3] which was reported to be "the best opening record of any James Bond film" up to that point,[45] surpassingOctopussy's $8.9 million from June that year. The film had its UK premiere at theWarner West End cinema in London on 14 December 1983 withPrince Andrew in attendance before opening to the public in London the following day and across the UK on 16 December.[33][46] It grossed $157,750 in its first 8 days in London from 8 screens in the West End, placing it at number one at the London box office.[47] Worldwide,Never Say Never Again grossed $160 million,[48] which was a solid return on the budget of $36 million.[48] The film ultimately earned less thanOctopussy, which grossed $187.5 million.[49][50] It was the first James Bond film to be officially released in theSoviet Union, premiering in the summer of 1990 with a gala inMoscow.[51]
Warner Bros. releasedNever Say Never Again onVHS andBetamax in 1984,[52] and onlaserdisc in 1995.[53] After Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer purchased the distribution rights in 1997 (seeLegacy, below), the company has released the film on both VHS andDVD in 2001,[54] and onBlu-ray in 2009.[55]
Never Say Never Again was broadly welcomed and praised by the critics:Ian Christie, writing in theDaily Express, said thatNever Say Never Again was "one of the better Bonds",[56] finding the film "superbly witty and entertaining, ... the dialogue is crisp and the fight scenes imaginative".[56] Christie also thought that "Connery has lost none of his charm and, if anything, is more appealing than ever as the stylish resolute hero".[56]David Robinson, writing inThe Times also concentrated on Connery, saying that: "Connery ... is back, looking hardly a day older or thicker, and still outclassing every other exponent of the role, in the goodnatured throwaway with which he parries all the sex and violence on the way".[57] For Robinson, the presence of Connery and Klaus Maria Brandauer as Maximillian Largo "very nearly make it all worthwhile."[57] The reviewer forTime Out summed upNever Say Never Again by saying: "The action's good, the photography excellent, the sets decent; but the real clincher is the fact that Bond is once more played by a man with the right stuff."[58]
Derek Malcolm inThe Guardian showed himself to be a fan of Connery's Bond, saying the film contains "the best Bond in the business",[59] but nevertheless did not findNever Say Never Again any more enjoyable than the recently releasedOctopussy (starring Roger Moore), or "that either of them came very near to matchingDr. No orFrom Russia with Love".[59] Malcolm's main issue with the film was that he had a "feeling that a constant struggle was going on between a desire to make a huge box-office success and the effort to make character as important as stunts".[59] Malcolm summed up that "the mix remains obstinately the same – up to scratch but not surpassing it".[59] Writing inThe Observer,Philip French noted that "this curiously muted film ends up making no contribution of its own and inviting damaging comparisons with the original, hyper-confidentThunderball".[60] French concluded that "like an hour-glass full of damp sand, the picture moves with increasing slowness as it approaches a confused climax in the Persian Gulf".[60]
Writing forNewsweek, criticJack Kroll thought the early part of the film was handled "with wit and style",[61] although he went on to say that the director was "hamstrung by Lorenzo Semple's script".[61]Richard Schickel, writing inTime, praised the film and its cast. He wrote that Klaus Maria Brandauer's character was "played with silky, neurotic charm",[62] while Barbara Carrera, playing Fatima Blush, "deftly parodies all the fatal femmes who have slithered through Bond's career".[62] Schickel's highest praise was saved for the return of Connery, observing "it is good to see Connery's grave stylishness in this role again. It makes Bond's cynicism and opportunism seem the product of genuine worldliness (and world weariness) as opposed to Roger Moore's mere twirpishness."[62]
Janet Maslin, writing inThe New York Times, was broadly praising of the film, saying she thought thatNever Say Never Again "has noticeably more humor and character than the Bond films usually provide. It has a marvelous villain in Largo."[63] Maslin also thought highly of Connery in the role, observing that "inNever Say Never Again, the formula is broadened to accommodate an older, seasoned man of much greater stature, and Mr. Connery expertly fills the bill."[63] Writing inThe Washington Post, Gary Arnold was fulsome in his praise, saying thatNever Say Never Again is "one of the best James Bond adventure thrillers ever made",[64] going on to say that "this picture is likely to remain a cherished, savory example of commercial filmmaking at its most astute and accomplished."[64] Arnold went further, saying that "Never Say Never Again is the best acted Bond picture ever made, because it clearly surpasses any predecessors in the area of inventive and clever character delineation".[64]
The critic forThe Globe and Mail,Jay Scott, also praised the film, saying thatNever Say Never Again "may be the only installment of the long-running series that has been helmed by a first-rate director."[65] According to Scott, the director, with high-quality support cast, resulted in the "classiest of all the Bonds".[65]Roger Ebert gave the film3+1⁄2 out of four stars, and wrote thatNever Say Never Again, while consisting of a basic "Bond plot", was different from other Bond films: "For one thing, there's more of a human element in the movie, and it comes from Klaus Maria Brandauer, as Largo."[66] Ebert went on to add, "there was never aBeatles reunion ... but here, by God, is Sean Connery as Sir James Bond. Good work, 007."[66]Gene Siskel ofThe Chicago Tribune also gave the film 3½ out of four stars, writing that the film was "one of the best 007 adventures ever made".[67]
Colin Greenland reviewedNever Say Never Again forImagine, and stated that "Never Say Never Again is a complacent male sexist fantasy, where women can be onlyfemmes fatales or passive victims."[68]
BecauseNever Say Never Again is not an Eon-produced film, it has not been included in a number of subsequent reviews. Norman Wilner ofMSN said that 1967'sCasino Royale andNever Say Never Again "exist outside the 'official' continuity, [and] are excluded from this list, just as they're absent fromMGM's megabox. But take my word for it; they're both pretty awful".[69] Nevertheless, retrospective reviews of the film remain positive.Rotten Tomatoes sampled 55 critics and judged 71% of the reviews as positive, with a top critics' rating of 70%. The site's critical consensus reads: "While the rehashed story feels rather uninspired and unnecessary, the return of both Sean Connery and a more understated Bond makeNever Say Never Again a watchable retread."[70] The score is still more positive than some of the Eon films, with Rotten Tomatoes rankingNever Say Never Again 16th among all Bond films in 2008.[71] OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 68 out of 100 based on 15 critics, indicating generally favourable reviews.[72]Empire gave the film three of a possible five stars, observing that "Connery was perhaps wise to call it quits the first time round".[73]IGN gaveNever Say Never Again a score of five out of ten, claiming that the film "is more miss than hit".[74] The reviewer also thought that the film was "marred with too many clunky exposition scenes and not enough moments of Bond being Bond".[74]
In 1995, Michael Sauter ofEntertainment Weekly ratedNever Say Never Again as the ninth best Bond film to that point, after 17 films had been released. Sauter thought the film "is successful only as a portrait of an over-the-hill superhero." He admitted that "even past his prime, Connery proves that nobody does it better".[75]James Berardinelli, in his review of Never Say Never Again, thinks the re-writing of theThunderball story has led to a film which has "a hokey, jokey feel, [it] is possibly the worst-written Bond script of all".[76] Berardinelli concludes that "it's a major disappointment that, having lured back the original 007, the film makers couldn't offer him something better than this drawn-out, hackneyed story."[76] CriticDanny Peary wrote that "it was great to see Sean Connery return as James Bond after a dozen years".[77] He also thought the supporting cast was good, saying that Klaus Maria Brandauer's Largo was "neurotic, vulnerable ... one of the most complex of Bond's foes"[77] and that Barbara Carrera and Kim Basinger "make lasting impressions."[77] Peary also wrote that the "film is exotic, well acted, and stylishly directed ... It would be one of the best Bond films if the finale weren't disappointing. When will filmmakers realize that underwater fight scenes don't work because viewers usually can't tell the hero and villain apart and they know doubles are being used?"[77]
Jim Smith and Stephen Lavington, in their 2002 retrospectiveBond Films, lament: "The production chaos is visible on screen, with frequently mediocre editing, direction, stunt work and photography all emerging from the restricted budget. [...] At the time,Never Say Never Again got away with it, thanks to public and critical pleasure at seeing Connery again. Now it is dated, slow and (worst of all) looks cheap, faring badly when compared to even the poorest of the Eon films."[78]
Originally,Never Say Never Again was intended to start a series of Bond films produced by Schwartzman and starring Connery as James Bond, with McClory announcing the next planned film,S.P.E.C.T.R.E, in a February 1984 issue ofScreen International.[79] When Connery announced that he would not reprise his role as Bond in another film produced by Schwartzman three weeks before the deadline to purchase the rights to another film for $5 million, Schwartzman said that he was unlikely to make another film without a deal from MGM/UA and Danjaq.[51][80]
In the 1990s, McClory announced plans to make another adaptation of theThunderball story starringTimothy Dalton entitledWarhead 2000 AD, but the film was eventually scrapped.[81] In 1997,Sony Pictures acquired McClory's rights for an undisclosed amount,[5] and subsequently announced that it intended to make a series of Bond films, as the company also held the rights toCasino Royale.[82] This move prompted a round of litigation from MGM, which was settled out of court, forcing Sony to give up all claims on Bond (with MGM's acquisition of the rights toCasino Royale finally allowing Eon Productions to make a serious, non-satirical film adaptation of that novel in 2006, withDaniel Craig as James Bond); McClory still claimed he would proceed with another Bond film,[83] and continued his case against MGM andDanjaq;[84] on 27 August 2001, the court rejected McClory's suit.[85] McClory died in 2006.[81] In 2013 McClory's heirs sold theThunderball rights to Eon, allowing the company to reintroduce Blofeld to the Eon series in the filmSpectre.
On 4 December 1997, MGM announced that the company had purchased the rights toNever Say Never Again from the estate of Schwartzman's company Taliafilm.[86][87] The company has since handled the release of both the DVD and Blu-ray editions of the film.[88][55]
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