Any James Bond fan should be instantly familiar with the Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion (better known as SPECTRE), the super villain group led by Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Unfortunately, legal battles have kept them off the screen (at least in EON films) since Diamonds Are Forever. Though many had given up hope that we’d ever see them return, the disputes seem to have been settled this week and we may get to see Blofeld show up in future James Bond film.
Check out the press release on the matter below.
Los Angeles, CA (November 15, 2013) – Danjaq, LLC, the producer of the James Bond films, and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), the longtime distributor of the Bond films, along with the estate and family of the late Kevin McClory, announced today that Danjaq and MGM have acquired all of the estate’s and family’s rights and interests relating to James Bond, thus bringing to an amicable conclusion the legal and business disputes that have arisen periodically for over 50 years.
For those who aren’t familiar with the whole legal battle, Kevin McClory owned the name SPECTRE, but passed away in 2006. After Diamonds Are Forever, there was a brief cameo by Blofeld in For Your Eyes Only, and an appearance in the non-EON film, Never Say Never Again. Other than that, McClory’s rights had kept SPECTRE safe from 007. Now that he has passed on, it seems his family was willing to negotiate the rights back to Bond, meaning at some point we will definitely be seeing Blofeld again. The question now is just how soon will it be until he makes his way into a 007 film?
In recent years, Quantum was created as a similar villain organization to replace SPECTRE. I’ll be honest, I quite enjoy Quatum, as there is still plenty of mystery within it and it seems like the sort of organization that could work in today’s world. SPECTRE, at least how it was originally portrayed, is a much campier, over-the-top group. Then again, it’s been said that they’re trying to bring the fun back into Bond, so perhaps that’s what the franchise is looking for right now.
There’s also the question of who will play Blofeld. He was first portrayed by Donald Pleasence, who created an iconic and memorable character. Every actor who has taken on the role since has brought something fresh and valuable to it, meaning that whoever holds the white cat next will have quite the shoes to fill.
Tell us, do you want to see SPECTRE and Blofeld show up in Bond 24? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.