James Bond is one of the most famous protagonists in cinema history, a near-unstoppable MI6 operative with a license to kill and full willingness to make use of that license. With his roles varying between espionage specialist and effective paid killer, the amount of people Bond kills in a single film can vary wildly.

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In part, this is due to the differing tone between various films. Some seek to be lighter, or conversely more realistic, and so do not feature as many deaths at all, or fewer at Bond's hands. Others are darker, or more reminiscent of classic action movies, and can feature Bond mowing down enemies by the dozen.

10 Most: No Time To Die Sees Bond In Many Casualty-Rich Gunfights

James Bond surrounded by agents of Spectre in No Time To Die

The most recent Bond effort, No Time to Die, is still only in cinemas, and so has not been released for people to watch at home, taking a careful tally of each fatality caused by Bond. Nonetheless, the film is the longest in the entire Bond canon, and unafraid of filling time with explosive and violent action sequences.

Fighting in Greece, Cuba, and on a disputed island, Bond engages in running gunfights with many enemies. Over the course of the film, he kills by gun, by car, by wristwatch, by gravity and, in a rarity for Bond, by accident. As a result, it seems likely the film contains more Bond kills than the previous fifth-highest, Tomorrow Never Dies.

9 Least: Diamonds Are Forever Ends Connery's Film Relatively Bloodlessly

James Bond pointing a gun in Diamonds Are Forever

Sean Connery's tenure as Bond, the very first, tends to have lower kills than some of his successors, due to in part the grittier tone of his films than many other Bonds, and the relatively limited effects of the day.

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Nonetheless, Bond's quest to stop Blofeld from using smuggled diamonds to power a spaceborne laser weapon to terrorize the world with, despite the high stakes, is a fairly un-lethal affair for the agent. Only seven enemies die by Bond's hand, despite over forty kills by other characters.

8 Most: Die Another Day Concludes A Violent Tenure

James Bond points a gun at a man in Die Another Day

Pierce Brosnan's time as Bond was noted for its increasing levels of violence, with Brosnan being the most violent Bond of all time, until potentially being eclipsed by Daniel Craig. Die Another Day rounds his Bond off with 31 kills attributed to him in the film.

In part, this is due to the film's wackier, 'campy' tone, where the fight scenes are taken less seriously than in other installments. As a result, Bond is free to kill plenty of enemies without breaking a sweat without any strain to suspension of disbelief. Nonetheless, it contributed to the film's historically poor rating by series fans.

7 Least: An Aging Bond Claims Few Lives In A View To A Kill

An unfortunate-looking stunt involving Roger Moore in a view to a kill James Bond

Despite its length, clocking in at over two hours, A View to a Kill is relatively light on action compared to other Bond movies, instead devoting its time to a plot that, for some, indulges in one convolution too many.

Moore was nearly 60 when he had his final time as James Bond in this film, and as a result, participates in fewer action scenes than is the standard for the series. In the entire film, Bond only kills five of his foes.

6 Most: The Spy Who Loved Me Is A Violent Affair

Bond wrestles with Jaws in the Spy Who Loved Me

The Spy Who Loved Me is the bloodiest film of Roger Moore's tenure, and claimed the record for the most kills at Bond's hand for nearly twenty years, until Pierce Brosnan stepped into the role. In total, the film has the second-most deaths of any Bond film, with the majority of these coming from freed sailors waging war on villain Stromberg's henchmen.

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Nonetheless, Bond pulls his weight in the combats in this film, claiming a total of thirty-one kills to his name, over a fifth of the kills in an incredibly violent movie.

5 Least: Lazenby Is Restrained During On Her Majesty's Secret Service

George Lazenby as James Bond pointing a gun in the snow in On Her Majesty's Secret Service

The only film featuring George Lazenby as James Bond cements him as, on average, the least lethal of the six portrayals of the character, being a low casualty film without any later installments to increase his average.

More faithful to the comparatively subdued novels, On Her Majesty's Secret Service sees Bond only killing five people as he pursues his nemesis Blofeld, and wins the heart of Contessa Teresa di Vincenzo.

4 Most: GoldenEye Cements Brosnan's Bond's Lethality

James Bond drops Alec Trevelyen to his death in Goldeneye James Bond

Formerly the Bond movie with the highest amount of death inflicted by the titular secret agent, GoldenEye shows Bond not holding back in the slightest as he goes up against a rogue former MI6 agent who was once his partner.

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Throughout the film, Bond kills 47 people as he fights to stop the plot of Alec Trevelyan, with the most notable being the villain himself, who Bond drops to a mortal injury with a typically dispassionate, sardonic line.

3 Least: Dr. No Starts The Series Modestly

James Bond utters his now-famous catchphrase in Dr No

The very first Bond film, Dr. No, is a relatively sedate storyline compared to the high-octane action spectaculars the films would become known as. To save on budget, and better adapt Ian Fleming's novels, the film more resembles a detective mystery, with action scenes being few, and often short.

As a result, the film, despite being popular, is strange as a representation of the series, with Bond only killing four people over the course of his entire adventure, spending much more of the time following leads and solving the case.

2 Most: Spectre Has Bond Getting Explosive

James Bond in Spectre's most iconic shot

As an attempt to inject a bit of old-school Bond melodrama and bombastic into the relatively slick and modern Craig tenure, Spectre gets slightly more ridiculous than its predecessors, with more stylized action, and a chase scene involving a grounded airplane.

It is hard to calculate Bond's overall kills in this film, as he blows up Blofeld's secret Moroccan base, along with at least some of its staff—even if not everybody dies. Nonetheless, it is likely to be at least in the dozens killed by the explosion, even without the film's other fatalities. As a result, this film is indisputably the one where Bond has the most kills.

1 Least: Bond Only Kills The Man With The Golden Gun's Villain

James Bond and Scaramanga engage in a traditional duel in The Man With the Golden Gun

The film with the fewest kills overall in the series, The Man with the Golden Gun, is a relatively comedic piece that also places a large amount of its emphasis on its villain, hitman Francisco Scaramanga.

When Bond gets into scrapes in this film, he tends to escape rather than fight it out, and he does not get into any engagements with large groups of henchmen who are in his way. The only person Bond kills in the entire film is Scaramanga himself, hunting the hitman down after he escapes during a duel.

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