''Skyfall'' is a 2012
spy film
The spy film, also known as the spy thriller, is a genre of film that deals with the subject of fictional espionage, either in a realistic way (such as the adaptations of John le Carré) or as a basis for fantasy (such as many James Bond films) ...
and the twenty-third in the
''James Bond'' series produced by
Eon Productions
Eon Productions Ltd. is a British film production company that primarily produces the ''James Bond'' film series. The company is based in London's Piccadilly and also operates from Pinewood Studios in the UK.
''Bond'' films
Eon was started ...
. The film is the third to star
Daniel Craig
Daniel Wroughton Craig (born 2 March 1968) is an English-American actor who gained international fame playing the secret agent James Bond in the film series, beginning with '' Casino Royale'' (2006) and in four further instalments, up to '' ...
as fictional
MI6
The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
agent
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
and features
Javier Bardem
Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem (; born 1 March 1969) is a Spanish actor. Known for his roles in blockbusters and foreign films, he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as the psychopathic assassin Anton Chigurh in ...
as
Raoul Silva, the
villain
A villain (also known as a " black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character ...
, with
Judi Dench
Dame Judith Olivia Dench (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. Regarded as one of Britain's best actresses, she is noted for her versatile work in various films and television programmes encompassing several genres, as well as for her ...
returning as
M. Directed by
Sam Mendes and written by
Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, and
John Logan, the film has Bond investigating a series of targeted data leaks and co-ordinated attacks on MI6 led by Raoul Silva. It sees the return of two recurring characters,
Miss Moneypenny
Miss Moneypenny, later assigned the first names of Eve or Jane, is a fictional character in the James Bond novels and films. She is secretary to M, who is Bond's superior officer and head of the British Secret Intelligence Service ( MI6).
Al ...
(played by
Naomie Harris
Naomie Melanie Harris (born 6 September 1976) is a British actress. She started her career when she was a child, appearing in the television series ''Simon and the Witch'' in 1987. She portrayed Selena in the zombie film ''28 Days Later'' (2002 ...
) and
Q (played by
Ben Whishaw
Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor and producer. After winning a British Independent Film Award for his performance in ''My Brother Tom'' (2001), he was nominated for an Olivier Award for his portrayal of the titl ...
), after an absence of two films.
Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes ( ; born 22 December 1962) is an English actor, film producer, and director. A Shakespeare interpreter, he excelled onstage at the Royal National Theatre before having further success at the Royal Shak ...
,
Bérénice Marlohe
Bérénice Lim Marlohe (born 19 May 1979) is a French actress. She played anti-heroine Bond girl Sévérine in the twenty-third ''James Bond'' film ''Skyfall''. Her television credits include ''Père et Maire'', ''Femmes de loi'', and ''Equip ...
and
Albert Finney are among the supporting cast.
Mendes was approached to direct after the release of ''
Quantum of Solace'' in 2008. Development of the film was suspended throughout 2010 after
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 ...
(MGM) filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which caused screenwriter
Peter Morgan to leave the project. Production resumed in December 2010 after Purvis, Wade, and Logan were hired and a November 2012 release date was announced in January 2011.
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
began that November after the film's title was revealed and lasted until March 2012, with filming locations including
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
,
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
, and
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
.
''Skyfall'' premiered at the
Royal Albert Hall on 23 October 2012, and was released theatrically in conventional and
IMAX formats in the United Kingdom three days later and in the United States on 9 November, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the first ''James Bond'' film ''
Dr. No'' (1962). ''Skyfall'' received praise for Mendes's direction, cast performances, action sequences, cinematography, and musical score. The film was nominated for five awards at the
85th Academy Awards
The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p. ...
, winning two, and received
numerous other accolades. ''Skyfall'' grossed $1 billion worldwide, the fourteenth film to do so, and became the then-
seventh-highest grossing film of all time, the highest-grossing ''James Bond'' film, the
second-highest grossing film of 2012, and the then-highest grossing film released by Sony or MGM. The next film in the series, ''
Spectre
Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to:
Religion and spirituality
* Vision (spirituality)
* Apparitional experience
* Ghost
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
'', was released in 2015.
Plot
In
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
,
MI6
The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
agents
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
and
Eve Moneypenny pursue mercenary Patrice, who has stolen a hard drive containing details of undercover agents. As Bond and Patrice fight atop a moving train,
M orders Moneypenny to shoot Patrice, despite not having a clear shot; Moneypenny inadvertently hits Bond, who falls into a river. Bond is presumed dead and Patrice escapes with the hard drive.
Three months later, due to a
public inquiry into M's handling of the stolen hard drive, she is pressured to retire by Gareth Mallory, the chairman of the
Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament
The Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament (ISC) is a statutory joint committee of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, appointed to oversee the work of the UK intelligence community.
The committee was established in 1994 by the ...
and a former
SAS officer. Although she claims she is still useful, MI6's servers are hacked, and M receives a taunting computer message moments before the
MI6 building
The SIS Building or MI6 Building at Vauxhall Cross houses the headquarters of the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS, MI6), the United Kingdom's foreign intelligence agency. It is located at 85 Albert Embankment in Vauxhall, a south western pa ...
explodes. Bond, who used his presumed death to retire, learns of the attack and returns to service in London. He fails a series of physical, medical, and psychological examinations, but M approves his return to the field, ordering him to identify Patrice's employer, recover the hard drive, and kill Patrice. He meets
Q, MI6's new
quartermaster
Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land armies, a quartermaster is generally a relatively senior soldier who supervises stores or barracks and distributes supplies and provisions. In ...
, who gives him a
radio beacon and a
Walther PPK
The Walther PP (german: Polizeipistole, or police pistol) series pistols are blowback-operated semi-automatic pistols, developed by the German arms manufacturer Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen.
It features an exposed hammer, a traditional double-a ...
pistol.
In
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
, Bond follows Patrice but is unable to prevent him killing a target. The two fight and Patrice falls to his death before Bond can learn his employer's identity. Moneypenny joins Bond in his investigation on orders from Mallory. Bond finds a
casino token Patrice intended to cash in for the assassination, leading him to a casino in
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a p ...
. There, Bond is approached by
Sévérine, Patrice's accomplice. Recognising her tattoo, he concludes she was a sex slave "rescued" by a criminal who now employs her, a man Bond wishes to meet. She warns him he is targeted by her bodyguards, but promises to help if Bond kills her employer. Bond thwarts the attack and joins Sévérine on her yacht, the ''Chimera''. They travel to an abandoned island off the coast of Macau, where the crew captures and delivers them to Sévérine's employer,
Raoul Silva. Once an MI6 agent, Silva turned to
cyberterrorism
Cyberterrorism is the use of the Internet to conduct violent acts that result in, or threaten, the loss of life or significant bodily harm, in order to achieve political or ideological gains through threat or intimidation. Acts of deliberate, la ...
and orchestrated the attack on MI6. Silva kills Sévérine, but Bond alerts MI6 reinforcements who capture Silva for
rendition to Britain.
At MI6's new underground headquarters, Q attempts to decrypt Silva's laptop, but inadvertently gives it access to the MI6 servers, allowing Silva to escape. Q concludes Silva wanted to be captured as part of a plan to kill M, whom he hates for
disavowing and betraying him to the
Chinese government
The Government of the People's Republic of China () is an authoritarian political system in the People's Republic of China under the exclusive political leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It consists of legislative, executive, m ...
in 1997, leaving him to be tortured and disfigured by a suicide attempt by cyanide pill. Silva escapes his cell and Bond chases him through the
London Underground
The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England.
The ...
and thwarts Silva's attack at a
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
inquiry where M is present.
Instructing Q and
Bill Tanner to leave an electronic trail for Silva to follow, Bond uses his
Aston Martin DB5
The Aston Martin DB5 is a British grand tourer (GT) produced by Aston Martin and designed by Italian coachbuilder Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera. Originally produced from 1963 to 1965, the DB5 was an evolution of the final series of DB4.
Alth ...
to take M to Skyfall, his childhood home in the
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland S ...
. They meet Skyfall's
gamekeeper
A gamekeeper (often abbreviated to keeper), or in case of those dealing with deer (deer-)stalker, is a person who manages an area of countryside (e.g. areas of woodland, moorland, waterway or farmland) to make sure there is enough game for s ...
Kincade, and together the trio set up a series of
booby traps throughout the house. When Silva's men arrive, Bond, M, and Kincade kill most of them, but M is wounded. Silva arrives by helicopter with more men and heavy weapons, so Bond sends M and Kincade through a
priest hole
A priest hole is a hiding place for a priest built into many of the principal Catholic houses of England, Wales and Ireland during the period when Catholics were persecuted by law. When Queen Elizabeth I came to the throne in 1558, there were se ...
to hide in a nearby chapel, and rigs propane tanks to explode. As the house and the helicopter are destroyed, Bond escapes down the same tunnel.
Silva survives the destruction of the house, following Kincade and M to the chapel. Confronting M, Silva forces his gun into her hand and presses his
temple
A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
to hers, begging her to kill them both. Bond arrives and kills Silva by throwing a knife into his back. M then succumbs to her wounds and dies in Bond's arms.
Following M's funeral, Moneypenny formally introduces herself to Bond and tells him she is retiring from fieldwork to become secretary for Mallory, the newly appointed M. Bond meets with Mallory, and tells him he is ready to get back to work.
Cast
*
Daniel Craig
Daniel Wroughton Craig (born 2 March 1968) is an English-American actor who gained international fame playing the secret agent James Bond in the film series, beginning with '' Casino Royale'' (2006) and in four further instalments, up to '' ...
as
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
, agent 007
*
Judi Dench
Dame Judith Olivia Dench (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. Regarded as one of Britain's best actresses, she is noted for her versatile work in various films and television programmes encompassing several genres, as well as for her ...
as
M, the head of MI6 and Bond's superior
*
Javier Bardem
Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem (; born 1 March 1969) is a Spanish actor. Known for his roles in blockbusters and foreign films, he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as the psychopathic assassin Anton Chigurh in ...
as
Raoul Silva (born Tiago Rodriguez), an ex-MI6 operative-turned-
cyberterrorist
Cyberterrorism is the use of the Internet to conduct violent acts that result in, or threaten, the loss of life or significant bodily harm, in order to achieve political or ideological gains through threat or intimidation. Acts of deliberate, la ...
*
Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes ( ; born 22 December 1962) is an English actor, film producer, and director. A Shakespeare interpreter, he excelled onstage at the Royal National Theatre before having further success at the Royal Shak ...
as Gareth Mallory, chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee and a former SAS Lieutenant Colonel (and later the new M)
*
Naomie Harris
Naomie Melanie Harris (born 6 September 1976) is a British actress. She started her career when she was a child, appearing in the television series ''Simon and the Witch'' in 1987. She portrayed Selena in the zombie film ''28 Days Later'' (2002 ...
as
Eve Moneypenny, an MI6 field agent
*
Bérénice Marlohe
Bérénice Lim Marlohe (born 19 May 1979) is a French actress. She played anti-heroine Bond girl Sévérine in the twenty-third ''James Bond'' film ''Skyfall''. Her television credits include ''Père et Maire'', ''Femmes de loi'', and ''Equip ...
as
Sévérine, Raoul Silva's associate and mistress
*
Albert Finney as Kincade, the gamekeeper of the Skyfall estate
*
Ben Whishaw
Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor and producer. After winning a British Independent Film Award for his performance in ''My Brother Tom'' (2001), he was nominated for an Olivier Award for his portrayal of the titl ...
as
Q, the MI6
quartermaster
Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land armies, a quartermaster is generally a relatively senior soldier who supervises stores or barracks and distributes supplies and provisions. In ...
*
Rory Kinnear
Rory Michael Kinnear (born 17 February 1978) is an English actor and playwright who has worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre. In 2014, he won the Olivier Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of William Sha ...
as
Bill Tanner, M's
chief of staff
*
Ola Rapace
Ola may refer to:
Places Panama
* Olá, a subdistrict in Coclé Province
*Olá District
Russia
*Ola, Russia, an urban settlement in Magadan Oblast
*Ola District, an administrative division in Magadan Oblast
*Ola (river), a river in Magadan Obl ...
as Patrice, a mercenary under Silva's command
*
Helen McCrory
Helen Elizabeth McCrory (17 August 1968 – 16 April 2021) was an English actress. After studying at the Drama Centre London, she made her stage debut in ''The Importance of Being Earnest'' in 1990. Other stage roles include playing Lady Mac ...
as Clair Dowar MP
Production
Development
Development of ''Bond 23'' began in 2009 but was suspended throughout 2010 because of
MGM's financial troubles. Preproduction resumed following
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
's exit from bankruptcy on 21 December 2010, and in January 2011, the film was officially given a release date of 9 November 2012 by MGM and the Broccoli family, with production scheduled to start in late 2011. Subsequently, MGM and
Sony Pictures announced that the UK release date would be brought forward to 26 October 2012, two weeks ahead of the US release date, which remained scheduled for 9 November 2012. The film's budget is estimated to have been between US$ and $,
compared to the $ spent on ''
Quantum of Solace''.
''Skyfall'' was part of year-long celebrations of the 50th anniversary of ''Dr. No'' and the Bond film series. According to producer
Michael G. Wilson
Michael Gregg Wilson, (born January 21, 1942) is an American-British screenwriter and film producer, best known for his association with the ''James Bond'' film series.
Background
Wilson was born in New York City, the son of Dana (née Na ...
, a documentary crew was scheduled to follow production of the film to celebrate the anniversary.
Pre-production
After the release of ''Quantum of Solace'' in 2008, producer
Barbara Broccoli
Barbara Dana Broccoli (born June 18, 1960) is an American film and stage producer, best known internationally for her work on the ''James Bond'' film series. With her half-brother Michael G. Wilson, Broccoli controls the ''James Bond'' film fr ...
commented that ''Skyfall'', untitled at the time, may continue the plot of the
Quantum organisation, introduced in ''
Casino Royale'' and continued in ''Quantum of Solace''.
In August 2011, the Serbian newspaper ''
Blic'' stated that ''Bond 23'' would be titled ''Carte Blanche'' and would be an adaptation of the
recent continuation novel by
Jeffery Deaver
Jeffery Deaver (born May 6, 1950) is an American mystery and crime writer. He has a bachelor of journalism degree from the University of Missouri and a J.D. degree from Fordham University and originally started working as a journalist. He late ...
. On 30 August, Eon Productions officially denied any link between ''Bond 23'' and ''Carte Blanche'', stating that "the new film is not going to be called ''Carte Blanche'' and will have nothing to do with the Jeffery Deaver book". On 3 October 2011, fifteen domain names including ' and ' were reported to have been registered on behalf of MGM and Sony Pictures by Internet brand-protection service
MarkMonitor
MarkMonitor Inc. is an American software company founded in 1999. It develops software intended to protect corporate brands from Internet counterfeiting, fraud, piracy, and cybersquatting. It also develops and publishes reports on the prevalence ...
. ''Skyfall'' was confirmed as the title at a press conference on 3 November 2011, during which co-producer Barbara Broccoli said that the title "has some emotional context which will be revealed in the film". The title refers to the name of Bond's childhood home, "Skyfall", and the setting for the film's finale.
Casting
The main cast was announced at a press conference held at the
Corinthia Hotel in London on 3 November 2011,
[Press conference coverage:
*
* ] fifty years after
Sean Connery had been announced as James Bond in the film ''
Dr. No''.
Daniel Craig
Daniel Wroughton Craig (born 2 March 1968) is an English-American actor who gained international fame playing the secret agent James Bond in the film series, beginning with '' Casino Royale'' (2006) and in four further instalments, up to '' ...
returned as James Bond for the third time,
saying he felt lucky to have the chance.
Mendes described Bond as experiencing a "combination of lassitude, boredom, depression
nddifficulty with what he's chosen to do for a living".
Judi Dench
Dame Judith Olivia Dench (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. Regarded as one of Britain's best actresses, she is noted for her versatile work in various films and television programmes encompassing several genres, as well as for her ...
returned as M for her seventh and final time. Over the course of the film, M's ability to run MI6 is called into question, culminating in a public inquiry into her running of the service.
Javier Bardem
Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem (; born 1 March 1969) is a Spanish actor. Known for his roles in blockbusters and foreign films, he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as the psychopathic assassin Anton Chigurh in ...
was cast as the principal villain, Raoul Silva, a
cyberterrorist
Cyberterrorism is the use of the Internet to conduct violent acts that result in, or threaten, the loss of life or significant bodily harm, in order to achieve political or ideological gains through threat or intimidation. Acts of deliberate, la ...
seeking revenge against those he holds responsible for betraying him.
Bardem described Silva as "more than a villain", while Craig stated that Bond has a "very important relationship" to Silva. Mendes admitted that he had lobbied hard for Bardem to accept the part, and saw potential for the character to be recognised as one of the most memorable in the series. He wanted to create "something
he audiencemay consider to have been absent from the Bond movies for a long time", and felt that Bardem was one of the few actors able to become "colourless" and exist as more than just a function of the plot. In preparing for the role, Bardem had the script translated into his native Spanish, which Mendes cited as a sign of his commitment. Bardem dyed his hair blond for the role, after brainstorming ideas for a distinct visual look with Mendes, which led some commentators to suggest a resemblance to
WikiLeaks
WikiLeaks () is an international non-profit organisation that published news leaks and classified media provided by anonymous sources. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activist, is generally described as its founder and director and ...
founder
Julian Assange.
Bérénice Marlohe
Bérénice Lim Marlohe (born 19 May 1979) is a French actress. She played anti-heroine Bond girl Sévérine in the twenty-third ''James Bond'' film ''Skyfall''. Her television credits include ''Père et Maire'', ''Femmes de loi'', and ''Equip ...
was cast as Séverine, saved from the Macau sex trade by Silva and now working as his representative. Marlohe described her character as being "glamorous and enigmatic",
and that she drew inspiration from ''
GoldenEye
''GoldenEye'' is a 1995 spy film, the seventeenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by Martin Campbell, it was the first in the se ...
'' villain
Xenia Onatopp (played by
Famke Janssen
Famke Beumer Janssen (; born ) is a Dutch actress. She played Xenia Onatopp in '' GoldenEye'' (1995), Jean Grey / Phoenix in the ''X-Men'' film series (2000–2014), and Lenore Mills in the ''Taken'' film trilogy (2008–2014). In 2008, she ...
).
Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes ( ; born 22 December 1962) is an English actor, film producer, and director. A Shakespeare interpreter, he excelled onstage at the Royal National Theatre before having further success at the Royal Shak ...
was cast as Gareth Mallory, a former
lieutenant colonel in the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
and now Chairman of the
Intelligence and Security Committee
The Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament (ISC) is a statutory joint committee of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, appointed to oversee the work of the UK intelligence community.
The committee was established in 1994 by the ...
, which regulates MI6. At the end of the film, Mallory becomes the head of MI6, assuming the title of 'M'. During production, Fiennes stated that he could not say anything specific about the role other than that it was a "really interesting part which is really quite fun". Fiennes had previously been considered to play Bond during the casting of ''
GoldenEye
''GoldenEye'' is a 1995 spy film, the seventeenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by Martin Campbell, it was the first in the se ...
''.
Naomie Harris
Naomie Melanie Harris (born 6 September 1976) is a British actress. She started her career when she was a child, appearing in the television series ''Simon and the Witch'' in 1987. She portrayed Selena in the zombie film ''28 Days Later'' (2002 ...
was cast as the returning character of Miss Moneypenny.
Harris's role was initially presented as that of Eve, an MI6 field agent who works closely with Bond. Despite media speculation that Harris had been cast as Miss Moneypenny, this was not confirmed by anyone involved in production, with Harris herself dismissing claims that Eve was in fact Moneypenny. According to Harris, Eve "
elievesshe is Bond's equal, but she is really his junior".
Another returning character was Q, played by
Ben Whishaw
Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor and producer. After winning a British Independent Film Award for his performance in ''My Brother Tom'' (2001), he was nominated for an Olivier Award for his portrayal of the titl ...
. Mendes had initially declined to confirm which part Whishaw would play,
and later said the idea of the re-introduction was his, saying, "I offered ideas about Moneypenny, Q and a flamboyant villain and they said yes". To play the part of Kincade, Mendes cast
Albert Finney. The producers briefly considered approaching Sean Connery to play the role in a nod to the 50th anniversary of the series, but decided not to as they felt Connery's presence would have been seen as
stunt casting and might disengage the audience.
Crew
![Sam Mendes 2012](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6f/Sam_Mendes_2012.jpg)
Mendes first signed on to direct the project shortly after ''Quantum of Solace'' was released, and remained as a consultant during the uncertainty surrounding MGM's financial situation. Mendes, who had previously worked with Craig on ''
Road to Perdition
''Road to Perdition'' is a 2002 American crime drama film directed by Sam Mendes. The screenplay was adapted by David Self from the graphic novel of the same name written by Max Allan Collins and illustrated by Richard Piers Rayner. The film ...
'', was approached after seeing Craig in ''
A Steady Rain'', meeting after a performance, where Craig broached the subject of directing a ''Bond'' film for the first time.
He was at first hesitant, as the job had little appeal to him, but he did not reject the offer immediately because of Craig's involvement and enthusiasm; Mendes described Craig's casting and performance in ''
Casino Royale'' as being what he felt the ''Bond'' franchise needed. He agreed to direct after meeting producers Michael G. Wilson and
Barbara Broccoli
Barbara Dana Broccoli (born June 18, 1960) is an American film and stage producer, best known internationally for her work on the ''James Bond'' film series. With her half-brother Michael G. Wilson, Broccoli controls the ''James Bond'' film fr ...
, and seeing the early direction the film was going to take.
Media speculation was that Mendes had commissioned rewrites of the script to "
emoveaction scenes in favour of 'characterful performances'" with the hope of securing an
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
.
Mendes denied this, saying that the action scenes were an important part of the film.
Roger Deakins
Sir Roger Alexander Deakins (born 24 May 1949) is an English cinematographer, best known for his collaborations with directors the Coen brothers, Sam Mendes and Denis Villeneuve. Deakins has been admitted to both the British Society of Cinema ...
signed on as cinematographer, having previously worked with Mendes on ''
Jarhead'' and ''
Revolutionary Road''.
Dennis Gassner
Dennis Gassner (born October 22, 1948) is an American/Canadian production designer. He is notable for his work on ''Bugsy'', ''Road to Perdition'', ''Big Fish'', ''Blade Runner 2049'', and '' 1917'', his collaborations with the Coen brothers, as ...
returned as production designer, the costume designer was
Jany Temime,
Alexander Witt
Alexander B. Witt (born 1952) is a Chilean-American filmmaker and cinematographer mostly known for his work as a camera operator and second unit director, including regular collaborations with director Ridley Scott.
Life & career
From a 2 ...
was director of the
second unit, the stunt co-ordinator was Gary Powell and
Chris Corbould
Christopher Charles Corbould, (; born 1958) is a British special effects coordinator best known for his work on major blockbuster films and the action scenes on 15 ''James Bond'' films since The Spy Who Loved Me. He has also worked extensivel ...
supervised the special effects, while the visual effects supervisor was Steve Begg. All had worked on previous ''Bond'' films.
Daniel Kleinman
Daniel Kleinman (born 23 December 1955) is a British television commercial and music video director who has designed every title sequence for the ''James Bond'' series of films since ''GoldenEye'' (1995), with the exception of '' Quantum of ...
returned to design the
title sequence
A title sequence (also called an opening sequence or intro) is the method by which films or television programmes present their title and key production and cast members, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound (often a opening theme song with vi ...
after stepping aside to allow graphic design studio
MK12
MK12 is a graphic design company best known for creating the title sequences for the films of Marc Forster, such as ''Stranger than Fiction (2006 film), Stranger than Fiction'' and ''Quantum of Solace'', as well as the interstitial videos in ''Th ...
to create the ''Quantum of Solace'' sequence.
Writing
Peter Morgan was originally commissioned to write a script, but left the project when MGM filed for bankruptcy and production of the film stalled; despite his departure, Morgan later stated that the final script was based on his original idea, retaining what he described as its "big hook". Mendes denied this as "just not true", insisting that Morgan's approach had been discarded once he had agreed to direct.
Robert Wade later said that "Neal and I were pretty steeped in
Fleming. I think Peter was more interested in
Le Carré. It just didn't work." Morgan cowrote the treatment ''Once Upon a Spy'' with
Neal Purvis and Robert Wade
Neal Purvis (born 9 September 1961) and Robert Wade (born 1962) are screenwriters who co-wrote the seven ''James Bond'' films from 1999's ''The World Is Not Enough'' to 2021's ''No Time to Die'', as well as other works.
Early lives
Purvis's ...
, which had M being blackmailed by a
Russian oligarch
Russian oligarchs ( Russian: олигархи, romanized: ''oligarkhi'') are business oligarchs of the former Soviet republics who rapidly accumulated wealth in the 1990s via the Russian privatisation that followed the dissolution of the Sovi ...
, who would be a former
KGB
The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
agent she had an affair with while stationed in
West Berlin
West Berlin (german: Berlin (West) or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin during the years of the Cold War. Although West Berlin was de jure not part of West Germany, lacked any sovereignty, and was under mi ...
during the
Cold War. The script would have ended with Bond being forced to kill M.
Mendes disliked most of the script but asked to keep the ending with M's death.
Purvis and Wade then wrote a new script drawing from ''
You Only Live Twice'' (1964) and ''
The Man with the Golden Gun'' (1965), in which Bond is presumed dead after an accident and travels back to London to an uncertain MI6. The original screenplay would have more closely followed the literary series' story arc with Bond become an
amnesiac
Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use o ...
and unknowingly impregnating his lover Lily in Turkey, who would have tracked him down to London after he returned to MI6. It would have featured Bond tracking down a
Francisco Scaramanga
Francisco Scaramanga is a fictional character and one of the main antagonists in the James Bond novel and film version of '' The Man with the Golden Gun''. Scaramanga is an assassin who kills with his signature weapon, a pistol made of solid gold ...
-esque villain into the
Andes Mountains, and would have had a "''
Heart of Darkness'' feel." The screenplay was delayed because of MGM's financial problems. At the end of 2010, Purvis and Wade completed a draft titled ''Nothing is Forever'' in which a villain called Raoul Sousa kills M with a bombing aboard the
Barcelona Metro
The Barcelona Metro (Catalan and Spanish: ) is an extensive network of rapid transit electrified railway lines that run mostly underground in central Barcelona and into the city's suburbs. It is part of the larger public transport s ...
and leaves a bureaucrat named Mallender as the new M. They still disliked the third act, and so later revised it to include the ending in Scotland. The final script was rewritten by
John Logan, who kept most of Purvis and Wade's basic story. Logan recounted being brought into the project by his long-time friend Mendes, describing the process between Mendes and the writers as "very collaborative", and that writing ''Skyfall'' was one of the best experiences he had had in scripting. British playwright
Jez Butterworth
Jeremy "Jez" Butterworth (born March 1969) is an English playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He has written screenplays in collaboration with his brothers, John-Henry and Tom.
Life and career
In March 1969, Butterworth was born in Lo ...
also provided uncredited contributions.
Location scouting
In April 2011, Mendes and Broccoli travelled to South Africa for
location scouting
Location scouting is a vital process in the pre-production stage of filmmaking and commercial photography. Once scriptwriters, producers or directors have decided what general kind of scenery they require for the various parts of their work ...
. With the film moving into pre-production in August, reports emerged that shooting would take place in India, with scenes to be shot in the
Sarojini Nagar district of New Delhi
and on railway lines between
Goa
Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...
and
Ahmedabad. The production crew faced complications in securing permission to close sections of the
Konkan Railway
The Konkan Railway (abbreviated KR) is one of the 19 railway zones in India with its headquarters at CBD Belapur in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The first passenger train ran on Konkan railway tracks on 20 March 1993, between Udupi and ...
. Similar problems in obtaining filming permits were encountered by production crews for ''
The Dark Knight Rises
''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a 2012 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan, and the story with David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is th ...
'' and ''
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol''. Permission was eventually granted to the Bond production crew; the production ultimately did not shoot in India.
Filming
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
was scheduled to take up to 133 days,
although actually took 128.
It began on 7 November 2011 in London,
with Deakins using
Arri Alexa
The Arri Alexa (stylised as ΛLEXΛ) is a digital motion picture camera system developed by Arri. First introduced in April 2010, the camera was Arri's first major transition into digital cinematography after previous efforts such as the Arrif ...
digital cameras to shoot the entire film. It was the first Bond film to be shot digitally.
Scenes were shot in
London Underground
The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England.
The ...
stations,
Smithfield car park in West Smithfield,
the
National Gallery
The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...
,
Southwark,
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament Sq ...
,
Parliament Square
Parliament Square is a square at the northwest end of the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster in central London. Laid out in the 19th century, it features a large open green area in the centre with trees to its west, and it contai ...
,
Charing Cross station
Charing Cross railway station (also known as London Charing Cross) is a central London railway terminus between the Strand and Hungerford Bridge in the City of Westminster. It is the terminus of the South Eastern Main Line to Dover via Ashfo ...
, the
Old Royal Naval College
The Old Royal Naval College is the architectural centrepiece of Maritime Greenwich, a World Heritage Site in Greenwich, London, described by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as being of "outstanding ...
in
Greenwich
Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross.
Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...
,
Cadogan Square
Cadogan Square () is a residential square in Knightsbridge, London, that was named after Earl Cadogan. Whilst it is mainly a residential area, some of the properties are used for diplomatic and educational purposes (notably Hill House School) ...
and
Tower Hill
Tower Hill is the area surrounding the Tower of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is infamous for the public execution of high status prisoners from the late 14th to the mid 18th century. The execution site on the higher gro ...
.
St Bartholomew's Hospital
St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust.
History
Early history
Barts was founded in 1123 by Rahere (die ...
was used for the scene in which Bond enters MI6's underground headquarters, while
the Old Vic Tunnels
The Old Vic Tunnels was an underground arts venue and performance space beneath London Waterloo railway station. The space consisted of almost 30,000 square feet of unused railway tunnels. It officially opened its doors for the first time in 200 ...
underneath Waterloo Station served as the MI6 training grounds. The meeting between Q and Bond was filmed when the National Gallery was closed at night.
The
Department of Energy and Climate Change offices were used for the scene near the end, when Bond stands on the roof.
Vauxhall Bridge
Vauxhall Bridge is a Grade II* listed steel and granite deck arch bridge in central London. It crosses the River Thames in a southeast–northwest direction between Vauxhall on the south bank and Pimlico on the north bank. Opened in 1906, i ...
and Millbank were closed to traffic for filming the explosion at the
MI6 headquarters at
Vauxhall Cross
Vauxhall ( ) is a district in South West London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. Vauxhall was part of Surrey until 1889 when the County of London was created. Named after a medieval manor, "Fox Hall", it became well known for ...
.
Unlike for ''
The World Is Not Enough
''The World Is Not Enough'' is a 1999 spy film, the nineteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions and the third to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by Michael Apted, from an ...
'', which featured an explosion at the building filmed at a large-scale replica, this explosion was added digitally during post-production. The finale was planned for
Duntrune Castle
Duntrune Castle is located on the north side of Loch Crinan and across from the village of Crinan in Argyll, Scotland. It is thought to be the oldest continuously occupied castle on mainland Scotland. The castle is a category B listed building.
...
in
Argyll
Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland.
Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...
, but shortly after filming began the location was changed to
Glencoe.
Although supposedly in Scotland, Bond's family home was constructed on
Hankley Common
Hankley Common is a nature reserve and filming location in the south-west of Elstead in Surrey. It is owned by the Ministry of Defence. The site is part of the Thursley, Hankley and Frensham Commons Special Area of Conservation, Special Prot ...
in Surrey using a plywood and plaster full-scale model of the building.
![Hacıkırı Varda Demiryolu Köprüsü](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Hac%C4%B1k%C4%B1r%C4%B1_Varda_Demiryolu_K%C3%B6pr%C3%BCs%C3%BC.jpg)
Production moved to Turkey in March 2012, with filming continuing until 6 May.
Adana
Adana (; ; ) is a major city in southern Turkey. It is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the Mediterranean Sea. The administrative seat of Adana province, it has a population of 2.26 million.
Adana lies in the heart of Cilicia, wh ...
stands in for the outskirts of
Istanbul
)
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 34000 to 34990
, area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side)
, registration_plate = 34
, blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD
, blank_i ...
.
Some Turkish teenagers infiltrated a closed set in railway sidings in Adana, during film rehearsals of the fight on top of a train, before they were caught by security. The train scene depicted in trailers showed the
Varda Viaduct
The Varda Viaduct ( tr, Varda Köprüsü), aka Giaour Dere Viaduct, locally known as "Alman Köprüsü" or "Koca Köprü" (literally: ''German Viaduct'' or ''Big Viaduct''), is a railway viaduct situated at Hacıkırı (Kıralan) village in Karai ...
outside Adana, during which Bond stunt double Andy Lister dived backwards off the drop, with a crane on a train carriage holding a safety line.
Parts of Istanbul—including the
Spice Bazaar
The Spice Bazaar ( tr, Mısır Çarşısı, meaning "Egyptian Bazaar") in Istanbul, Turkey is one of the largest bazaars in the city. Located in the Eminönü quarter of the Fatih district, it is the most famous covered shopping complex after th ...
,
Yeni Camii, the
Grand Post Office
The Istanbul Grand Post Office ( tr, Büyük Postane), or Istanbul Main Post Office, is an office building for postal services located in the Sirkeci neighborhood of the Eminönü quarter within the Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey. It was desi ...
,
Sultanahmet Square and the
Grand Bazaar—were closed for filming in April.
Affected store owners were reportedly allowed to open their shops, but not allowed to conduct business, instead being paid
TRY
Try or TRY may refer to:
Music Albums
* ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio
* ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs
* "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987)
* "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014)
* "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004)
* " Try (Ju ...
750 ($418) per day as compensation.
Production was criticised for allegedly damaging buildings while filming a motorcycle chase across rooftops. Wilson denied this, pointing out that the crew had removed sections of rooftop before filming, and replaced them with temporary replicas. The production team negotiated with 613 part-owners of Calis Beach in
Fethiye
Fethiye () is a city and district of Muğla Province in the Aegean Region of Turkey. It is one of the prominent tourist destinations in the Turkish Riviera. In 2019 its population was 162,686.
History
Fethiye was formerly known as Makri (). ...
to film along the coastline.
Mendes confirmed that China would feature in the film, with shooting scheduled for Shanghai and "other parts" of the country.
Logan asserted that they deliberately sought locations that were "in opposition" to London, with an exotic quality as "places for Bond to be uncomfortable".
Scenes with the principal actors were not filmed on location in Shanghai, but in the UK. The
Virgin Active
Virgin Active is a chain of health clubs in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Italy, Australia, Singapore, Thailand and the United Kingdom.
History
Virgin Active was founded in 1999. Their first club opened in Preston, Lancashire that year. I ...
pool in London's
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is an area of London, England, located near the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Canary Wharf is defined by the Greater London Authority as being part of London's central business district, alongside Central Lon ...
acted as Bond's hotel pool,
Ascot Racecourse
Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races a ...
stood in for
Shanghai Pudong International Airport
Shanghai Pudong International Airport is one of two international airports serving Shanghai and a major aviation hub of East Asia. Pudong Airport serves both international flights and a smaller number of domestic fights, while the city's oth ...
, and London's
Broadgate Tower
The Broadgate Tower is a skyscraper in London's main financial district, the City of London. It was constructed between 2005 and 2008.
History
The developer for the site was British Land. In February 2005 Broadgate Plaza Ltd, a subsidiary of Bri ...
was used as the entrance and lobby of the Shanghai office building. The Golden Dragon casino in Macau was constructed on a sound stage at
Pinewood Studios, with 300 floating lanterns and two 30-foot-high dragon heads lighting the set.
The production received permission to shoot second unit aerial footage of Shanghai from a helicopter loaned by the
Chinese government
The Government of the People's Republic of China () is an authoritarian political system in the People's Republic of China under the exclusive political leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It consists of legislative, executive, m ...
.
The first official image from the film was released on 1 February 2012, showing Craig on set at Pinewood within a recreation of a Shanghai skyscraper.
The lair of villain Silva was inspired by
Hashima, an
abandoned island off the coast of
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan.
It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...
,
Japan. In the film, the fictionalized island is located near
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a p ...
. Mendes explained that the sequence was created with a combination of large sets of the city streets and computer-generated establishing shots.
The Hashima setting was included after Craig met with Swedish film-maker Thomas Nordanstad while shooting ''
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'' (original title in sv, Män som hatar kvinnor , lit=''Men Who Hate Women'') is a psychological thriller novel by Swedish author and journalist Stieg Larsson (1954–2004). It was published posthumously in 2 ...
'' in
Stockholm. Nordanstad, who produced a short 2002 documentary on the island entitled ''Hashima'', recalled Craig taking extensive notes during the meeting, but was unaware of his interest in it until ''Skyfall'' was released.
The film was later converted into the IMAX format for projection in IMAX cinemas. Deakins was unaware that the film was to be released on IMAX until after he had made the decision to shoot the film with the
Arri Alexa
The Arri Alexa (stylised as ΛLEXΛ) is a digital motion picture camera system developed by Arri. First introduced in April 2010, the camera was Arri's first major transition into digital cinematography after previous efforts such as the Arrif ...
cameras, and was unhappy with the IMAX tests made from his footage as the colours "didn't look great".
After exploring the IMAX system further and discovering that the IMAX Corporation was using their
proprietary re-mastering process, Deakins had further tests made without the process and found that "the images looked spectacular on the big IMAX screen", quelling his doubts about the format.
Music
Thomas Newman
Thomas Montgomery Newman (born October 20, 1955) is an American composer and conductor best known for his many film scores. In a career that has spanned over four decades, he has scored numerous films including '' The Player'' (1992); '' The Sh ...
, who had previously worked with Mendes as composer for ''
American Beauty'', ''Road to Perdition'', ''Jarhead'' and ''Revolutionary Road'', replaced
David Arnold
David Arnold (born 23 January 1962) is a British film composer whose credits include scoring five James Bond films, as well as ''Stargate'' (1994), '' Independence Day'' (1996), ''Godzilla'' (1998) and the television series ''Little Britain'' ...
as composer,
becoming the ninth composer in the series' history. When asked about the circumstances surrounding his departure from the role, David Arnold commented that Newman had been selected by Mendes because of their work together, rather than because of Arnold's commitment to working with director
Danny Boyle
Daniel Francis Boyle (born 20 October 1956) is an English director and producer. He is known for his work on films including '' Shallow Grave'', '' Trainspotting'' and its sequel '' T2 Trainspotting'', '' The Beach'', ''28 Days Later'', '' S ...
as composer for the Opening Ceremony of the
2012 Summer Olympics. The soundtrack album was released on 29 October 2012 in the United Kingdom and on 6 November 2012 in the United States.
In October 2012 British singer-songwriter
Adele
Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a rec ...
confirmed that she had written and recorded
the film's theme song with her regular songwriter,
Paul Epworth
Paul Richard Epworth (born 25 July 1974) is an English record producer, songwriter, musician, and remixer. He has worked with artists including Adele, Florence and the Machine, Rihanna, and Maxïmo Park, among many others. He is a member o ...
.
She later posted the cover for the "Skyfall"
sheet music on Twitter, crediting the songwriting to herself and Epworth, with arrangements to both Epworth and orchestrator
J. A. C. Redford. The song was released online at 0:07 am
BST on 5 October 2012, a day dubbed "James Bond Day" by the producers as it marked 50 years to the day of the release of ''Dr. No''.
The song was nominated for and won the
Academy Award for Best Original Song. It was the first time a Bond song had won, and the fourth time one had been nominated.
"Skyfall" also won the
Brit Award
The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...
for Best British Single at the
2013 BRIT Awards
Brit Awards 2013 was held on 20 February 2013. This was the 33rd edition of the British Phonographic Industry's annual Brit Awards. The awards ceremony was held at The O2 Arena in London, and was presented for the third time in three years by J ...
.
The film also features
Charles Trenet
Louis Charles Augustin Georges Trenet (; 18 May 1913 – 19 February 2001) was a renowned French singer-songwriter who composed both the music and the lyrics to nearly a thousand songs over a career that lasted more than 60 years. These include ...
's 1938 song "
Boum !
"Boum!" (, onomatopoeia similar to "boom" in English) is a popular 1938 song by the French singer/songwriter Charles Trenet which won him the Grand Prix du Disque. Its light, irreverent lyrics express a ''joie de vivre'' typical in French popular ...
" during scenes in which Silva shows Bond around his abandoned island, and
The Animals
The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and ...
' 1964 cover of
John Lee Hooker's song, "
Boom Boom" when Silva assaults Skyfall in the film's finale.
Release and reception
The premiere of ''Skyfall'' was on 23 October 2012 at the
Royal Albert Hall in London. The event was attended by
Charles, Prince of Wales
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...
, and his wife
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall
Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is Queen Consort of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. She became queen consort on 8 September 2022, upon the ac ...
. Charles asked that money raised at the premiere be donated to charities that served former or serving members of the British intelligence agencies.
The film was released in the UK three days later on 26 October and into US cinemas on 8 November.
''Skyfall'' was the first Bond film to be screened in IMAX venues
and was released into IMAX cinemas in North America a day earlier than the conventional cinema release.
''Skyfall'' attracted some criticism from the
US Sexual Violence Resource Center which, without having screened the film, expressed concern that Bond "abuses his power and authority" in a scene that suggests Bond initiates sexual intercourse with Sévérine, a former victim of
sex trafficking.
Box office
''Skyfall'' earned $1.109 billion worldwide,
and at the time of its release was the highest-grossing film worldwide for Sony Pictures and the
second-highest-grossing film of 2012. On its opening weekend, it earned $80.6 million from 25 markets.
In the UK the film grossed £20.1 million on its opening weekend, making it the second-highest Friday-to-Sunday debut ever behind ''
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2
''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2'' is a 2011 fantasy film directed by David Yates from a screenplay by Steve Kloves. The film is the second of two cinematic parts based on the 2007 novel ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallow ...
''. It also achieved the second-highest IMAX debut ever behind ''
The Dark Knight Rises
''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a 2012 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan, and the story with David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is th ...
''.
The film set a record for the highest seven-day gross with £37.2 million, surpassing previous record holder ''Deathly Hallows – Part 2'' (£35.7 million). By 9 November 2012 the film had earned over £57 million to surpass ''
The Dark Knight Rises
''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a 2012 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan, and the story with David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is th ...
'' as the highest-grossing film of 2012, and the highest-grossing James Bond film of all time in the UK. After 40 days of release the total UK gross stood at £94.28 million, making ''Skyfall'' the
highest-grossing film in the UK, surpassing the £94.03 million of ''
Avatar
Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appeara ...
''. By 30 December 2012, it had become the first film to gross more than £100 million ($161.6 million) in the UK.
''Skyfall''s box office receipts made it only the 14th film and first Bond film to gross over $1 billion, the seventh-highest-grossing film ever made at the time, pushing it past the inflation-adjusted amount of $1.047 billion earned by ''
Thunderball''.
''Skyfall'' set an opening weekend record in Switzerland ($5.3 million) and recorded the second-largest opening weekend of the year for a Hollywood film in India after ''
The Amazing Spider-Man
''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its main protagonist. Being in the mainstream continuity of the franchise, it began publication in 1963 as a bimonthly per ...
'' ($5.1 million), as well as grossing $14.3 million on its opening weekend in France. In Austria, it achieved the second-highest opening weekend ever ($3.4 million) behind ''
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'', while in Finland, it scored the largest opening weekend when excluding previews ($1.47 million).
In North America, the film opened in 3,505 cinemas, the widest opening for a Bond film.
The film earned $2.4 million from midnight showings on its opening day and a further $2.2 million from IMAX and large-format cinemas.
''Skyfall'' went on to gross $30.8 million on its opening day in the US and Canada, and $88.4 million in its opening weekend, the biggest debut yet for a Bond film. By the end of its theatrical run, the film earned $304.4 million in the United States and Canada, making it the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2012 in these regions.
Critical response
''Skyfall'' received "generally positive reviews from critics and fans", according to the ''
GlobalPost
''GlobalPost'' is an online US digital journalism company that focuses on international news founded on January 12, 2009, by Philip S. Balboni and Charles M. Sennott. Its stated mission is "to redefine international news for the digital age." ...
''. On
review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
website
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the film received an
approval rating
An opinion poll, often simply referred to as a survey or a poll (although strictly a poll is an actual election) is a human research survey of public opinion from a particular sample. Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions ...
of 92% based on 384 reviews, with an average rating of 8.20/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Sam Mendes brings Bond surging back with a smart, sexy, riveting action thriller that qualifies as one of the best 007 films to date." On
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, the film has a weighted average score of 81 out of 100 based on 49 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
CinemaScore polls reported that the average grade filmgoers gave the film was an "A" on an A+ to F scale.
A number of critics, including
Kate Muir
Kate Muir is a Scottish writer and documentary maker. Her book, ''Everything You Need to Know About the Menopause (But Were Too Afraid to Ask)'' was published in 2022, and she is the creator and producer of two documentaries on the menopause incl ...
, reviewing for ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...
'',
Philip French, writing in ''
The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...
'',
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
's Daniel Krupa and the reviewers for the ''
Irish Independent'' and the ''
Daily Record'', all asked whether ''Skyfall'' was the best Bond film.
[The reviews in question are:
*
*
*
*
* ] ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was f ...
''s film reviewer,
Robbie Collin
Robbie Collin is a British film critic.
Collin studied aesthetics and the philosophy of film at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. He edited the university's student newspaper, '' The Saint''.
Collin has been the chief film critic at ''The D ...
, considered ''Skyfall'' to be "often dazzling, always audacious",
with excellent action sequences in a film that contained humour and emotion.
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy (born February 16, 1950) is an American film critic and author. He wrote for '' Variety'' for 31 years as its chief film critic until 2010. In October of that year, he joined ''The Hollywood Reporter'', where he subsequently served ...
of ''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...
'' thought that ''Skyfall'' was "dramatically gripping while still brandishing a droll undercurrent of humor",
going on to say that it was a film that had "some weight and complexity to it".
''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' Peter DeBruge suggested that the film's greatest strength lay in its willingness to put as much focus on characterisation as it did action set-pieces, allowing the two to co-exist rather than compete for the audience's attention,
while
Manohla Dargis
Manohla June Dargis () is an American film critic. She is one of the chief film critics for ''The New York Times''. She is a five-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.
Career
Before being a film critic for ''The New York Times'', ...
, reviewing for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', considered ''Skyfall'' to be "a superior follow-up to ''
Casino Royale''"
which is "opulent rather than outlandish and insistently, progressively low-key".
Kim Newman
Kim James Newman (born 31 July 1959) is an English journalist, film critic and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's ''Dracula'' at ...
, reviewing the film for ''
Empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
'', concluded, "''Skyfall'' is pretty much all you could want from a 21st Century Bond: cool but not camp, respectful of tradition but up to the moment, serious in its thrills and relatively complex in its characters but with the sense of fun that hasn't always been evident lately".
Roger Ebert of the ''
Chicago Sun-Times
The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago ...
'' gave the film 4 out of 4 stars, describing it as "a full-blooded, joyous, intelligent celebration of a beloved cultural icon".
Reviewing for the ''
New Statesman
The ''New Statesman'' is a British Political magazine, political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney Webb, Sidney and Beatrice ...
'', Ryan Gilbey saw that "nostalgia permeates the movie",
going on to say that "sometimes the old ways are the best".
A number of reviewers praised Daniel Craig's lead performance. Roger Ebert believed that in ''Skyfall'', "Daniel Craig
akesfull possession of a role he earlier played well in 'Casino Royale,' not so well in 'Quantum'";
Philip French commented that "Craig manages to get out of the shadow of
Connery">eanConnery";
while Daniel Krupa thought Craig's Bond was a "defining performance" for "a great actor".
Edward Porter, writing in ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...
'', considered that "Craig has developed an authoritative Bond persona, dry and intelligent".
Ryan Gilbey thought Craig had "relaxed into Bond without losing any steeliness".
The supporting cast also received praise. Roger Ebert reflected that ''Skyfall'' "at last provides a role worthy of Judi Dench, one of the best actors of her generation. She is all but the co-star of the film, with a lot of screen time, poignant dialogue, and a character who is far more complex and sympathetic than we expect in this series".
Jenny McCartney, writing in ''
The Sunday Telegraph
''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings.
It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', kn ...
'', agreed, describing Dench as "compellingly luminous" in the film, and the one that "the camera caresses most meaningfully and often".
McCartney thought Javier Bardem played Silva "with worrisome élan",
while Henry K Miller considered his character "the most authentically Bondian Bond villain in decades".
A number of critics noted the strength of the supporting cast; Kim Newman found the "warmth and gravitas" of Finney's performance noteworthy,
while other reviewers, including Edward Porter, Daniel Krupa and ''The Playlist''s Oliver Lyttelton, singled out Ralph Fiennes as Mallory and Ben Whishaw as Q.
[The reviewers in question are:
*
*
* ]
Ann Hornaday, writing for ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', thought Sam Mendes had reinvigorated the series, with ''Skyfall'' being "sleek, crisp, classy ... exhibiting just the right proportion of respect for legacy and embrace of novelty".
Henry K. Miller of ''
Sight & Sound
''Sight and Sound'' (also spelled ''Sight & Sound'') is a British monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). It conducts the well-known, once-a-decade ''Sight and Sound'' Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time, ongoing ...
'' agreed, and praised Mendes, who he thought was worthy of directing more Bond films.
Kim Newman also praised Mendes's direction of the action sequences.
The work of cinematographer Roger Deakins also received praise: Newman commented that he "delivers the most impressive visuals this series has had since the 1960s",
and Miller described the film as "dazzlingly photographed".
The film did not escape criticism, with reviews pointing to its two and a half-hour running time, and the final third of the film being "protracted", and not matching the first two thirds in its momentum as the underlying flaws in the film.
Xan Brooks of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', in an otherwise positive review, criticised the "touchy-feely indulgence" of "the bold decision to open Bond up – to probe at the character's back-story and raise a toast to his relationship with M".
Daniel Krupa also singled out
Naomie Harris
Naomie Melanie Harris (born 6 September 1976) is a British actress. She started her career when she was a child, appearing in the television series ''Simon and the Witch'' in 1987. She portrayed Selena in the zombie film ''28 Days Later'' (2002 ...
as "awkward" and having "virtually non-existent chemistry" with Craig.
Similarly Philip French in ''The Observer'' tempered his praise for the film by highlighting "some lazy repetition" and argued, "the badinage is often perfunctory and Bond is as usual captured too easily and too easily escapes".
Edward Porter, writing in ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...
'', considered that while aspects of the film were "achieved with wit and panache",
he found that the climax to the film was slightly disappointing, although the "weaknesses in the final stages are not serious, however, and the film's brief epilogue is wonderful".
Home media
![King's Cross railway station MMB B0](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/King%27s_Cross_railway_station_MMB_B0.jpg)
''Skyfall'' was released on
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
,
Blu-ray
The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...
, and digital HD in the US and Canada on 12 February 2013, and in the UK on 18 February 2013.
It was later released on
Ultra HD Blu-ray
Ultra HD Blu-ray (4K Ultra HD, UHD-BD, or 4K Blu-ray) is a digital optical disc data storage format that is an enhanced variant of Blu-ray. Ultra HD Blu-ray discs are incompatible with existing standard Blu-ray players, though a traditional Bl ...
on 22 October 2019 along with the other three Daniel Craig Bond movies in a 4K boxset, with this release itself being released standalone 25 February 2020 by
20th Century Studios Home Entertainment
20th Century Studios Home Entertainment (commonly referred to as 20th Home Video, or 20th Home Entertainment, formerly known as 20th Century-Fox Video, CBS/Fox Video, Fox Video, and 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment) is a home video label of Wa ...
.
Accolades
At the
85th Academy Awards
The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p. ...
, ''Skyfall'' received nominations for
Best Cinematography,
Best Original Score, and
Best Sound Mixing; and won
Best Original Song
This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
and
Best Sound Editing. The film's other nominations include eight
British Academy Film Awards (winning two), seven
Critics' Choice Movie Awards
The Critics' Choice Movie Awards (formerly known as the Broadcast Film Critics Association Award) is an awards show presented annually by the American-Canadian Critics Choice Association (CCA) to honor the finest in cinematic achievement. Writ ...
(winning three), and a
Golden Globe Award (which it won).
See also
* ''
Happy and Glorious'', a short film starring Daniel Craig as James Bond produced for the
2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
The opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics took place on the evening of Friday 27 July 2012 in the Olympic Stadium, London, during which the Games were formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II. As mandated by the Olympic Charter, the proce ...
*
List of films featuring home invasions
There is a body of films that feature home invasions. Paula Marantz Cohen says, "Such films reflect an increased fear of the erosion of distinctions between private and public space... These films also reflect a sense that the outside world is mo ...
*
Outline of James Bond
Notes and references
Notes
References
Sources
*
External links
* – official site
*
*
*
*
{{Authority control
2012 films
2012 action films
2010s spy action films
British sequel films
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American sequel films
BAFTA winners (films)
Best British Film BAFTA Award winners
Films that won the Best Original Song Academy Award
Films that won the Best Sound Editing Academy Award
2010s English-language films
Films about computing
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Films scored by Thomas Newman
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