Which James Bond Actor Starred in the Most 007 Movies? (2025)

With No Time to Die, Daniel Craig officially bowed out as James Bond, leaving the franchise to face the inevitable task of selecting a new actor for the role. It's become a ritualistic part of 007, almost as much as the Q-branch gadgets and the villains' secret lairs. Unlike other long-standing franchises, such as Star Trek and Star Wars, Bond is centered around an individual. Recasting for a new James Bond actor is necessary, allowing the character to be reinvented for changing times.

The six actors to play the role have a mixed track record for longevity, and even the series stalwarts grew weary after a time. The Bond franchise has a reputation for arduous shoots, which can particularly be daunting for the leading man. With Craig passing the baton to a new Bond after a memorable onscreen run, there's no shortage of rumors around the most famous movie spy. But which actor has played 007 in the most movies? The winner is not apt to be unseated anytime soon.

Updated by Arthur Goyaz on August 7, 2024: News about a new 007 can be announced at any time now, with great contenders worth considering. Hopefully, there are plenty of great Bond movies for fans to watch while they wait. This article was updated to include the latest news on who might be the next James Bond.

George Lazenby Was A One-Off Bond

Lazenby made only one turn as Bond in 1969's On Her Majesty's Secret Service, released after Sean Connery departed the role. According to Kiss! Kiss! Bang! Bang! The Unofficial James Bond Film Companion, the producers wanted Roger Moore to replace Connery and intended to make The Man With The Golden Gun the next project. The war in Cambodia forced a change in plans (the film is set there) and Moore took the lead in the TV series The Saint. The 007 role ended up going to Lazenby.

However, the actor couldn't match his predecessor's onscreen presence. Lazenby came across as passive and detached rather than cool and professional, failing to connect with Diana Rigg's Bond girl in what turned out to be one of the most important relationships in the series. Lazenby was a curious case, especially because he had no prior experience in movies, having appeared solely in commercials before the Bond casting. Though there are rumors that the actor cheated his way to an audition, there's no denying he made a huge impression on the producers and casting agents.

Nailing a screen-test fight scene and doing justice to the sophistication of the character, Lazenby seemed befitting enough to the legacy left by Connery. His agent, however, thought that James Bond was doomed in the counterculture age, deeming him archaic and fated to become trite. Lazenby took the bad piece of advice seriously, which cost him a memorable run as the iconic spy hero. While On Her Majesty's Secret Service scored high overall marks, the producers convinced Connery to return for the next outing. Therefore, Lazenby's tenure as James Bond becomes the shortest of any Bond actor: a mere footnote in the longer history of the franchise.

Timothy Dalton Had Two Great James Bond Films

Dalton fared better than Lazenby in the eyes of Bond fans over time, though it took a while to get there. Although the role almost went to Jurassic Park's Sam Neill, Dalton was originally brought on instead of Pierce Brosnan, who fans considered the natural heir to Roger Moore following the success of his TV show Remington Steele. According to the director's commentary on The Living Daylights DVD, NBC spiked the deal that would have made Brosnan the new 007. Dalton was brought in to replace him and initially earned the scorn of fans in response.

The box office failure of Dalton's second Bond film, 1989's License to Kill, ended his brief run and put the whole series in limbo for a few years. Fans have subsequently warmed to his comparatively gritty and straightforward take on the character, however. The Living Daylights remains a first-tier entry, with strong action scenes and a badly needed sense of freshness. While License to Kill can't match that, it's also one of the grittiest of the pre-Craig Bonds. After Roger Moore's tenure as the playboy superspy, it effectively reminded the audience that there was nothing fun about 007's world. It leaves Dalton's turn extremely well-regarded, despite how brief his time as Bond was.

Pierce Brosnan Was The Bond Of The '90s And 2000s

Despite a comparatively lengthy stint in the role, Brosnan suffered from a lack of strong scripts and poor timing, which found the James Bond franchise searching for a new direction following the end of the Cold War. While the actor proved more than game, the films fell into a bit of a rut, seeking new ways to reinvigorate the formula without taking any appreciable risks. With competitors like M en in Black and the first Mission: Impossible franchise disrupting the espionage genre, Bond suddenly felt dated and old.

1995's GoldenEye brought new energy after a six-year hiatus, and Brosnan was able to carry that for three more films, aided most notably by Judi Dench, who made her debut as M in the Brosnan era. They failed to make any strong impression, however, and while they all turned a profit, they began to feel more pro forma each time. The era's emphasis on sci-fi spectacle — marked by the Star Wars prequel trilogy — also pulled 007 into more outlandish directions, with gadgets and settings that shattered the franchise's already delicate sense of plausibility. By the time 2002's Die Another Day delivered an ice fortress and an invisible car, it was clear that the actor's fourth movie would be his last.

Daniel Craig Had The Longest Tenure As James Bond So Far

Craig has been credited with bringing about a renaissance for 007, returning Bond to the lean espionage storytelling of his roots and abandoning the more outlandish side of the character in favor of 21st-century grit. The high-tech gadgets were replaced by a figure who acted more like a government-licensed hitman than a secret agent. The approach shook the franchise out of the rut it had been in for over a decade while giving Craig the longest tenure in the role, at least in terms of years.

While his overall track record is hit or miss, two of Craig's films (2006's Casino Royale and 2013's Skyfall) rank among the very best in the franchise. Casino Royale was the last of Fleming's original novels to reach the screen, while Skyfall constituted nothing less than a celebration of the franchise. Both left an impression unseen since the Roger Moore days and with Craig taking his leave of the role after No Time to Die, he casts an extremely long shadow for whoever replaces him.

Sean Connery Defined The Role of James Bond

Connery is first among equals with James Bond actors, not only because he originated the character on the big screen but because he cemented the image of 007 in the public's eye. He played the role for the first five 007 movies before departing, citing increasing frustration with the franchise's production and the emphasis on gadgets and hardware instead of espionage.

Connery was lured back a sixth time in 1971's Diamonds Are Forever, but it was clear that his heart wasn't in it. His immediate post-Bond career is considered his strongest — with the likes of Robin and Marion, The Man Who Would Be King, and The Great Train Robbery appearing within a decade — and it's hard to regret his departure knowing what he still had in store for moviegoers.

Connery was 41 when he made Diamonds Are Forever, and beginning to show his age. In other circumstances, it might have been his last outing, leaving Moore with the top spot alone. He returned a final time, however, in the "rogue" Bond picture Never Say Never Again in 1983, produced outside the purveyance of Albert L. Broccoli and competing with Moore's Octopussy, released earlier that year. It nudged his final count up enough to share the top spot with his most prolific successor. No one, however, can ever top Connery's legacy in the part: the Bond against whom all other Bonds are measured.

Roger Moore Had The Most Official Movies as James Bond

Moore took over the role in 1973's Live and Let Die and brought a breezy, devil-may-care attitude that matched the era's zeitgeist well. Over the next 12 years, he appeared in six more films, turning Bond into a playboy adventurer as much as a hardened secret agent. The gadgets became wilder, and the plots became more arch-and-knowing, though the actor found his share of grittier outings, such as 1981's For Your Eyes Only.

The approach made his Bond particularly distinctive, and while he lacks the pedigree of Connery or Craig, Moore's stints in the role is embraced by James Bond fans. He's also the de facto winner of the list — with Connery's seventh film coming outside the "official" 007 franchise — making Moore the most successful James Bond actor. Moore's final turn came at a cost, however. 1985's A View to a Kill was a box office dud, and the aging actor was no longer convincing in the role he has still played more than anyone else thus far.

Who Will Be the Next James Bond?

Possible James Bond Contenders:

It's been three years since No Time to Die was released, the same amount of time it took between Brosnan's exit and Craig's announcement as the next James Bond. With each passing year, the anticipation behind the new 007 grows and evolves, especially in the face of the changes the Bond franchise might go through. For one thing, Amazon purchased MGM only a few months before No Time to Die came out, sparking some concerns about the franchise's future. Producer Michael G. Wilson is determined to make Bond 26 happen, though, and he spoke to Deadline in 2022 about how the Amazon deal introduces a whole new world, but "There'll always be a Bond."

The MGM changes suggest that it will take more time for a new Bond to be announced, but appealing rumors suggest otherwise. The Sun was the first to report that Aaron Taylor Johnson was offered the role of James Bond, but there's nothing settled on Johnson's end so far. In fact, shortly after the rumors started in March of this year, the actor was announced in another franchise: 28 Years Later, the third installment in Danny Boyle's groundbreaking zombie tale. That doesn't mean Johnson is no longer available: the 34-year-old actor has proven to be a solid multi-franchise actor over the years, taking part in movies such as Avengers: Age of Ultron, Kick-Ass, Godzilla, and The King's Man. In December 2024, Kraven the Hunter will resume Sony's cinematic universe with Johnson in the lead role.

Despite Johnson's history in the action genre, other prolific actors are being considered for the James Bond role. Thanks to the acclaim of the general public, Henry Cavill is considered the runner-up, but there's no confirmation of any official talks between the parties. In April, an AI-generated video of Cavill as James Bond went viral worldwide, getting 2.3 million views on YouTube despite lacking any credibility. If anything, the fake trailer proved that Bond fans would be interested in seeing the actor in the 007 suit. Hopefully, it won't take long before an official James Bond is announced, kicking off a new promising generation in the espionage genre.

James Bond

The James Bond franchise focuses on the titular British Secret Service agent, who has the codename 007.

Created by

Ian Fleming

First Film

Dr. No

Latest Film

No Time to Die

Cast

Daniel Craig , Pierce Brosnan , Sean Connery , Timothy Dalton , Roger Moore , David Niven , George Lazenby

Character(s)

James Bond