Does James Bond die in No Time To Die? 007 film's ending explained
Does Daniel Craig say a rather fatal goodbye to James Bond 007? **WARNING: MAJOR NO TIME TO DIE SPOILERS**
Across 25 official films in a franchise that spans nearly six decades of film history, many have tried to kill iconic spy James Bond.
However, in the run-up to the release of the fifth and final outing of Daniel Craig in the role of 007, there were reports and rumours that the film series would do the unthinkable and kill off the cinematic legend.
No Time To Die sees Bond come out of his solitary retirement in Jamaica to help his old ally Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) save a kidnapped scientist (David Dencick) from a villainous plot to use some dangerous new technology.
Along the way, Bond is reunited with his former love Dr Madeleine Swann (Lea Seydoux), old adversary Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Christoph Waltz), and his old MI6 allies Q (Ben Whishaw), Eve Moneypenny (Naomie Harris), Bill Tanner (Rory Kinnear) and M/Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes).
With the help from some of these old faces and some new ones - including 00 agent Nomi (Lashana Lynch) and Cuban agent Paloma (Ana de Armas) - Bond attempts to take on the evil Lyutsifer Safin (Rami Malek).
However, does this final battle prove fatal?
*Beware that there are obvious spoilers for No Time To Die below*
No Time To Die ending explained
Does James Bond die in No Time To Die?
Incredibly, the rumours were true! As outlandish as the suggestion might have originally sounded, the film does indeed end with Bond being pretty unambiguously killed – by an MI6 missile strike, no less.
Bond's death occurs on Safin's island, where he had travelled to save Madeleine Swann and his surprise daughter Mathilde from the villain's clutches, and also to destroy Safin's base entirely before he can enact his plan of world domination.
This plan involves using nanobots to infect millions of people around the world, exploiting technology that had previously been developed by M to target people based specifically on their DNA, with the intention having originally been to create a weapon that ruled out collateral damage.
After fighting off an impressive number of Safin's henchman, Bond is able to open the large missile silos that will allow MI6's missiles to destroy the base, and it seems like his work is done. But alas, it is not so simple.
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Safin reemerges and shoots at Bond and, although 007 is able to overpower the villain, in his dying words Safin reveals an awful truth: he has infected Bond with new nanobots that mean he will kill Madeleine and Mathilde if he so much as touches them.
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After realising his fate, he ignores Q's demands to get off the island and instead asks him to let him speak to Madeleine. They speak about their love and their daughter, just before the missiles are launched straight into the island – presumably killing him instantly.
The film ends with two separate scenes paying tribute to Bond – one in which his MI6 colleagues raise a toast, and one in which Madeleine begins to tell their daughter about his story. "I want to tell you about a man," she says. "His name was Bond, James Bond."
The film ends with Louis Armstrong's track 'We Have All The Time in the World', in a final homage to the 1969 film On Her Majesty's Secret Service where the song originates from.
Who else dies in No Time To Die?
Bond himself isn't the only major character to kick the bucket during the film.
As you might expect, several villains are despatched by Bond – including Safin and fellow new characters Logan Ash (Billy Magnuson) and Valdo Obruchev (David Dencik).
Perhaps most memorably of all, Blofeld (Christoph Waltz) is killed after Bond unwittingly passes on a fatal nanobot to him.
The first major death in the film, though, is Bond's long-term ally Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) who is killed by Logan Ash after the latter reveals himself to be a traitor on board a boat.
Despite Bond's best attempts to save the CIA agent, nothing can be done to prevent his death – with the ship rapidly sinking after an explosion was set off by Ash.
Thankfully, Bond delivered revenge to Ash by dropping a car on him - yes, really.
So, with Craig's Bond killed off, the never-ending question continues: who will take on the role as the next James Bond actor?
Finally, if you are wondering when you can watch the film at home, be sure to check out the latest news here.
Read More: When is No Time to Die out on DVD and streaming?
No Time To Die is out now in UK cinemas– visit our Movies hub for more news and features, or find something to watch with our TV Guide.
Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
Lewis Knight is the Trends Editor for Radio Times, covering trending titles from TV, Film and more. He previously worked at The Mirror in TV, Film, and Showbiz coverage alongside work on SEO. Alongside his past work in advertising, he possesses a BSc in Psychology and an MA in Film Studies.
