James Bond 26 will be the start of a new Bond era, and it must use this chance to finally replace Blofeld with a new 007 nemesis. Daniel Craig’s era changed James Bond in many positive ways, such as swapping out the gimmicky missions and gadgets for darker, more realistic, and emotionally tormenting stories for 007. Skyfall in particular started the dive into Bond’s life by going back to his childhood home and Spectre revealed Bond’s connection to Blofeld, through them being half-brothers. Spectre created a whole network of Bond villains connected to Blofeld and essentially made him the mastermind behind every villain James Bond went up against.

Blofeld is a classic Bond villain and is one of the original characters from Ian Fleming’s original stories. Blofeld’s first appearance in the Bond movies was in Thunderball and has become the most recurring antagonist of the Bond franchise. Since Thunderball, Blofeld has changed considerably, going from the stereotypical criminal mastermind stroking a cat (an iconic character trait of his) to Christopher Waltz’s stripped-back version. Waltz’s Blofeld echoes his predecessors, with a scarred face and a cameo from the white Persian cat, but his antics and involvement in Bond have since escalated considerably.

Bond 26 Needs To Move Away From Blofeld After Daniel Craig's Era

Now Craig’s era is ending, Bond 26 needs to move away from Blofeld as the overarching nemesis. Spectre’s revelation of Blofeld’s antics was a huge twist which could have worked if executed properly, but his minimal role in No Time To Die undercut the severity of his actions. Rami Malek’s Safin was the main villain of No Time To Die and fit the typical Bond villain criteria very well. However, his role as the main antagonist stripped away the chance of a satisfying face-off between Bond and Blofeld. Blofeld’s heavy inclusion in Spectre did warrant a new antagonist, but not rounding off Bond and Blofeld’s story made Blofeld’s role in Craig’s Bond era fall flat.

Trying to revive Blofeld in Bond 26 would not only be difficult since his death in No Time To Die is so recent, but it would be boring for viewers and unsurprising. Spectre revealed Blofeld had been behind every single villain who came James Bond came up against, so including Blofeld in Bond 26 would have to continue this. Bond 26 will have to be starting a fresh story with James Bond dying in No Time To Die, so this is the perfect opportunity to move away from Blofeld and give audiences a new villain, who is unexpected and takes on a completely different angle in Bond.

James Bond's Movie Future Still Needs An Overarching Nemesis

Bond 26 needs to move away from Not Time To Die's story and from Blofeld, but it does not mean that it should not have an overarching nemesis. James Bond’s movie future still needs this - albeit in a way that does not include, nor mimic, Blofeld’s storyline. The James Bond movies are technically individual stories, but the more modern versions have included a long-term story over an actor’s era, and this is still what modern audiences expect. The new era of Bond needs to balance the smaller villains of each movie with the overarching nemesis that gives Bond a long-term focus.An overarching nemesis is beneficial for audiences and for the plot of James Bond. Creating a story that spans an era raises the stakes for Bond as his fight becomes more personal and adds emotion to the storyline. For audiences, an overarching nemesis allows for a shock reveal and a big face-off between Bond and a criminal mastermind. Plus, it means the Bond era can be watched back and fans can connect the stories and spot Easter eggs which revealed the nemesis from the beginning.

How Bond 26 Can Replace Blofeld (Without Copying SPECTRE)

Blofeld’s story was a clever one by having him orchestrating smaller villains and having a personal vendetta against Bond, his half-brother, but Bond 26 cannot copy this. Audiences would be unsurprised by another SPECTRE-style set-up and would know what to look out for. However, Bond 26 does still need that overarching nemesis with a connection to Bond, so it has to create a villain who can be sustained throughout multiple movies. Blofeld is the blueprint for villains across plenty of movies now, so Bond 26 has to include something that has no connection to him. One way of doing this is to move away from Bond being targeted specifically.

Bond’s family was used a lot in Craig’s era, so a new villain would need a different motive. To cut ties with Blofeld’s connection, a nemesis could be trying to bring Bond, or the MI6, down from the inside. A supposed ally would be able to stay close to Bond and cause him issues throughout multiple movies while remaining undetected. Bond 26 using a nemesis that resides within Bond’s close circle would remove the good vs. evil aspect SPECTRE had and still ensure a shocking revelation for audiences. It would also reinvent James Bond 26 by including issues of domestic problems in a country, raising the stakes as the fight is closer to home.