Although Daniel Craig's tenure as James Bond has come to an end with No Time To Die, the actor has undoubtedly left his mark as one of the most beloved incarnations of the iconic super-spy. Over the course of his five movies, Craig's Bond ran the gauntlet in terms of enemies, with some of his foes quickly becoming iconic additions to the pantheon of Bond villains, while others may not end up being remembered so fondly.
Let's take a look back at the five major foes of Daniel Craig's James Bond, and rank them based on their threat level, effectiveness and general memorability.
5. Quantum of Solace's Dominic Greene Is An Uninspired Enemy For 007
The main antagonist of Quantum of Solace is environmentalist Dominic Greene, who plans to take control of Bolivia's water and oil supply. Greene, who is a high-ranking member of the secretive crime syndicate Quantum, sets up a hotel in a barren region of Bolivia, but is confronted and defeated by James Bond.
The filmmakers behind Quantum of Solace intentionally didn't give Greene any disfigurements or unique traits that have come to be expected from Bond villains in order to make a point about how the people who seem normal on the outside can be the most vile, but as a result, he ends up not being very memorable. Though Greene does display a shocking level of brutality in his final battle with 007, there's not much else to him, and he ultimately ends up as the least inspired foe of Daniel Craig's era.
4. Ernst Stavro Blofeld Has A Convoluted Backstory With James Bond
There's no doubt that Ernst Stavro Blofeld is James Bond's greatest foe overall. Unfortunately, when the terrorist leader was reintroduced into the Bond series in Spectre, the newest version of Blofeld left quite a bit to be desired. The film makes the baffling choice of retconning Blofeld's backstory so that he and James Bond are actually adoptive brothers, creating a strange dynamic between them and making the SPECTRE leader seem like a petty child rather than a diabolical mastermind. Christoph Waltz delivers a fairly solid performance, though many Bond fans believe that his portrayal was a bit too soft-spoken and not threatening enough.
Blofeld returns in No Time To Die, where he plays an integral role to the plot even though he is being kept under heavy lock and key by MI6. While he only physically appears in one scene, Waltz makes the most of his time, delivering a much more unhinged and sadistic performance than in Spectre. However, this very brief appearance isn't enough to make up for his underwhelming debut, and Waltz's take on Blofeld is largely remembered as a waste of a potentially great villain.
3. Lyutsifer Safin Is A Deadly Foe With Unclear Motivations In No Time To Die
No Time To Die's Lyutsifer Safin is one of the most controversial Bond villains in recent memory. While Rami Malek imbues the character with a feeling of terrifying instability, he's a bit underdeveloped thanks to a lack of screen time, with his evil plan in particular not making much sense. After using nanobots to kill every member of SPECTRE as revenge for his family's murder, Safin decides to unleash the nanobots on the rest of the world to kill millions. The reasoning for Safin's sudden genocidal turn isn't really explained, and feels somewhat unearned as a result.
Despite all this, Safin does go down as the only villain to have caused James Bond's death when he breaks a vial of nanobots over 007, ensuring that he'll never be able to see his new family again. Accepting the circumstances, Bond allows himself to be blown up by missiles sent to destroy the villain's lair. While Safin may not have personally murdered him, there's no doubt that the spy would have escaped with his life had the villain not infected him with nanobots, and this one final move of absolute cruelty on Safin's part definitely cements him as one of Craig's worst foes as Bond.
2. Le Chiffre Challenges James Bond To A Deadly Poker Game At The Casino Royale
Mads Mikkelsen's Le Chiffre is one of the most celebrated aspects of Casino Royale, and for good reason. The villain is depicted as a banker for terrorists who loses a large amount of money, and decides to win it back by hosting a high-stakes poker game. Of course, 007 infiltrates the game, leading to some tense confrontations between the two men.
Mikkelsen is able to show so many different sides of Le Chiffre, depicting him as a boastful winner at one moment and a desperate loser in fear for his life at the next. The villain's plan is suitably high-stakes, but very believable at the same time. If nothing else, Le Chiffre holds the record for the most brutal torture scene ever conducted by a Bond villain.
1. Raoul Silva Nearly Destroys MI6, Burns Down Skyfall And Kills M
With his performance as Raoul Silva, Javier Bardem created one of the most iconic Bond villains of all time. Initially introduced as a rogue hacker with a bone to pick with MI6, Silva is later revealed to be a former agent who was betrayed by M, having spent years amassing resources before enacting an elaborate revenge scheme. Despite James Bond's interference, Silva's plan ultimately succeeds, with M dying of her wounds at the end of the film. In the process, the villain also blows up MI6's headquarters and burns down 007's family home, Skyfall Lodge. All of these attacks demonstrate the absolute hatred that Silva exhibits towards his former allies, and he's one of the few Bond villains to completely succeed in his plans despite his death.