It's well known that action movies are often not entirely realistic. Real-life combats are often short, gritty affairs ended by the first serious injury, rather than the adrenaline-pumping extravaganzas audiences have gotten used to seeing on the big screen. James Bond in particular is a character notorious for his survival - up until No Time To Die, at least.

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Even when villains aren't subjecting him to elaborate tortures instead of shooting him, or when Bond isn't getting away with - sometimes literal - murder unscathed, there are times when simple physics suggests that he should die, according to what we see happening to him on-screen. In some scenarios, his survival would be sheerly impossible in real life.

10 Bond's Gunshot Wound And Drowning (Skyfall)

Bond falls down a waterfall after being shot in Skyfall

To be fair to Skyfall, everyone thought that Bond was dead in-universe as well. The prologue to Daniel Craig's third outing sees him and Moneypenny racing to stop the mercenary Patrice from making off with a briefcase containing classified MI6 information. This lead to Bond brawling with Patrice atop a train whilst Moneypenny attempts to provide overwatch.

Ordered to take a shot, Moneypenny ends up accidentally shooting Bond through the chest. With a bullet wound, he falls from atop a train, into the water, down a waterfall, and then sinks into the water. Although being dragged beneath the ocean floor is likely just part of Skyfall's stylistic opening credits sequence, his death from blood loss, organ damage, or simply drowning would be likely.

9 The Spine-Stretching Torture (Thunderball)

A SPECTRE agent tries to assassinate Bond with a spine-stretching machine Thunderball Bond movie

SPECTRE, Bond's most notorious foes, have tried a number of ways to assassinate him, but they become pretty clearly desperate by the time of Thunderball, resorting to physio equipment. After Bond's physiotherapist places him in a device designed to stretch the spine following some blatant harrassment, she leaves him for fifteen minutes.

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Almost immediately, a SPECTRE agent turns the machine up to its maximum, informing Bond that "It's nice to have met him." This indicates that this should be a lethal injury in Thunderball, but it largely leaves Bond uncomfortable, and perfectly capable of having a tryst just minutes later.

8 A Hydrogen-Powered Hotel Exploding Around Him (Quantum Of Solace)

A hydrogen-powered hotel explodes around Bond without killing him Quantum of Solace Bond movie

The sheer lethal force of explosions, with fire, concussive force, and flying shrapnel, is often downplayed in action films because explosions add excitement to nearly any action scene. Nonetheless, they are highly lethal, particularly when incredibly flammable fuel like hydrogen is used.

The finale of Quantum Of Solace takes place in a hotel powered by hydrogen. As Quantum Of Solace's action sequence unfolds, it very quickly begins exploding bit by bit. Trapped in this hotel, Bond somehow manages to survive several fights and make his escape without being burned, crushed, or blown apart by the many explosions all around him.

7 The Drive-By Shooting (On Her Majesty's Secret Service)

Irma Bunt gunning down Tracy Bond On Her Majesty's Secret Service Bond movie

Now that On Her Majesty's Secret Service has been retrospectively considered a much better film than initial reviews, Bond fans are able to appreciate the genuine tragedy of the moment at the end of the film. On Her Majesty's Secret Service sees Blofeld and Irma Bunt drive past the newly-married James and Tracy Bond and strafes them with gunfire, killing Tracy.

The moment is somewhat undercut by the realization that, with Irma Bunt firing on full-auto, Bond apparently dodged every single bullet with a simple duck, resulting in the bullets hitting Tracy instead. A sombre moment, for sure, but one that should have seen two funerals, not one.

6 The Explosion In The Tunnels (Skyfall)

Bond blows up his home of Skyfall Bond movie

James Bond isn't fond of his ancestral home of Skyfall, a fact that he makes clear in Skyfall when he blows it up to take out Raoul Silva's men and helicopter. Bond attempts to be some distance away down the house's tunnels, but the fireball catches up with him.

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After a few moments of old-fashioned outrunning the fireball, Bond throws himself down a side passage to escape. Although he is blasted some ways down it by the sheer force, the fire apparently isn't very interested in going down that side passage, leaving Bond largely unscathed.

5 The Karate School Execution (The Man With The Golden Gun)

James Bond faces off in a karate match in the worst execution ever in The Man With the Golden Gun

The Man With The Golden Gun is a deliberately lighter and funnier Bond movie - even by the standards of Roger Moore's era.Consequently, The Man With The Golden Gun has fewer fights, in favor of chases and escapes.

Bond's villains are notorious for not killing him in practical fashions, but there is nearly always a reason, such as wanting information from him. In The Man With The Golden Gun, however, a henchman knocks Bond out. Instead of killing him there and then, the henchman takes Bond to a martial arts dojo so that he can be killed with karate when he wakes up. Even by the standards of Bond villains, that is a ludicrous survival.

4 Drinking Poison And Defibrilating Himself (Casino Royale)

James Bond poisoned with digitalis in Casino Royale

One of the signature moments from Casino Royale is a blood-pumping scene where Bond's drink is poisoned with digitalis, leading him to rapidly attempting to save himself in the short space of time he has left. Obviously, the scene is geared towards drama, rather than an accurate depiction of digitalis poisoning.

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One thing that stands out in Casino Royale, however, is that Bond's antitoxin appears not to work, and he is told to defibrilate himself before he loses consciousness. Ultimately, he is saved when Vesper does so for him, but in actuality, this would likely be what kills him. Defibrilation does not restart a heart or prolong a heartbeat, but instead resets an irregular heartbeat - and may well have stopped his.

3 Falling Onto The Millennium Dome (The World Is Not Enough)

James Bond falls onto the Millennium Dome in The World is Not Enough

As tough as a person is, sudden deceleration will have several deleterious effects, not restricted to broken bones and damaged organs. When Bond falls from a hot air balloon to the roof of the Millennium Dome, quite some distance, he appears to suffer no ill-effects other than some moderate pain.

After this fall in The World Is Not Enough, Bond is capable of grabbing hold of a rope to keep himself from falling. He puts his entire body weight on an arm that should be broken in several places, if not attached to a dead man entirely.

2 An Extravagant Car Crash (Casino Royale)

Bond's Astin Martin flips over numerous times in Casino Royale

Many of Bond's cars are well-established as being equipped with all manner of gadgets, and being able to withstand nearly any level of punishment. In the more grounded Casino Royale, however, there is no suggestion that Bond's Aston Martin is anything other than expensive and very, very sleek.

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When chasing after Le Chiffre, Bond swerves to avoid Vesper Lynd, who has been bound in the middle of the road. As a result, his car flips over several times, and is utterly totalled. Bond's skeleton is apparently stronger, as he suffers no permanent injuries, and is even capable of withstanding torture shortly after.

1 Taking An Explosion Directly To The Face (No Time To Die)

James Bond after his SPECTRE ambush in No Time to Die

Explosions continue to not cause harm to James Bond, but there is often some plausible deniability surrounding them. Often, Bond is never seen being directly hit by one, or throws himself out of the way seconds before they happen. In the action-packed prologue to No Time to Die, this is not what happens.

Instead, when SPECTRE ambush Bond at Vesper Lynd's grave, he only notices the explosive device at the last second, resulting in it blowing up more or less in his face. Most people would be killed outright by this, but Bond is simply deafened, and able to pull himself together for an adrenaline-pumped chase scene and emotional breakup within the next hour.

NEXT: 10 Ways James Bond Changed Between Casino Royale And No Time To Die