Warning: SPOILERS for No Time To Die.

Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Christoph Waltz) wasn't the main villain of No Time To Die, but was the fear of repeating the underwhelming reception and box office of Spectre the reason Blofeld was relegated to the background? Blofeld does return in Daniel Craig's final James Bond film, which directly follows up the events of Spectre before introducing 007's new adversary, Lyutsifer Safin (Rami Malek). By the end of No Time To Die, both Blofeld and Spectre are no more, and James Bond himself sacrifices his life to protect his love, Dr. Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux) and their daughter, Mathilde (Lisa-Dorah Sonnet).

Daniel Craig's rebooted James Bond continuity resisted reintroducing Ernst Stavro Blofeld until the fourth movie, Spectre. Instead, a Spectre-like organization called Quantum that MI6 didn't know existed employed Bond's enemies like Mr. White (Jesper Christensen) and Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen). But Spectre was such a massive retcon of all of Daniel Craig's Bond movies that it's surprising how Christoph Waltz's version of Blofeld was relegated to a supporting role in No Time To Die in favor of Safin. It's worth speculating how much of this decision was driven by the creative turnover of No Time To Die's director and how much was driven by the lackluster reception and performance of Spectre, which failed to match the critical acclaim and billion-dollar gross of Skyfall. Daniel Craig also had ill words about Spectre and he returned for No Time To Die partly so that Spectre wouldn't be his swansong as 007.

Related: Daniel Craig Made The Perfect Bond Trilogy (Just A Shame About The Others)

After Sam Mendes, the director and creative architect of Skyfall and Spectre, departed, Danny Boyle was originally going to direct Bond 25. Boyle and his screenwriter, John Hodge, left because of creative differences and Boyle was replaced as director by Cary Joji Fukunaga, who chose to follow up the events of Spectre but also introduce an entirely new villain who would tie together Bond's history with Madeleine Swann's. Fukunaga's early twist that No Time To Die was happening in James Bond's mind as he was being tortured by Blofeld in Spectre was scrapped, but the director still wanted to wrap up Bond and Blofeld's story that Spectre introduced. Yet Blofeld wasn't made No Time To Die's main villain despite his prominence in Spectre, and this is possibly due to fear of audience backlash.

Spectre Established Blofeld As The Overarching Villain Of Craig's Bond Era

In one of the biggest retcons in James Bond history, Spectre established that Ernst Stavro Blofeld was James Bond's adoptive brother, who was originally known as Franz Oberhauser. Sam Mendes' film didn't stop there; Blofeld's criminal network, Spectre, was revealed to be the overarching organization behind Quantum and all of the villains Bond had previously faced, including Skyfall's murderous ex-MI6 agent, Silva (Javier Bardem). As such, Blofeld proudly boasted to James, his "cuckoo" little brother, that he was "the author of all of your pain."

Revamping Blofeld as the bad guy pulling the strings against James Bond from the shadows all along should have set the stage for far more stories, but by the end of Spectre, Blofeld was imprisoned and Bond quit MI6. Still, Blofeld was captured, not dead, and this signaled that Ernst and Spectre would return to plague Bond, potentially for years to come. However, the real-world reception of Spectre showed that neither critics nor fans were enamored of the Blofeld retcon, which curtailed the momentum to bring Blofeld back for another go-around. Christoph Waltz even publicly stated that he wouldn't reprise Blofeld in Bond 25, and it was only when Blofeld appeared in No Time To Die's trailer that it was clear Waltz's Blofeld would return, although not as the new film's main villain.

No Time To Die Brings Blofeld Back But Not As The Main Villain

Blofeld meets Bond in No Time to Die

Although Safin was clearly No Time To Die's primary villain, Blofeld still made a significant impact in the story even in his reduced role. Blofeld manipulated James and Madeleine and broke up their romance by making Bond believe Swann betrayed him while Spectre set a trap to assassinate the former secret agent at Vesper Lynd's (Eva Green) tomb. Blofeld still somehow controlled Spectre from his prison cell and he was able to set a trap to kill Bond with a bioweapon called Project Heracles in Cuba, although Safin and his agent, Valdo Obruchev (David Dencik), turned the tables to wipe out Spectre. The one-eyed incarcerated master criminal also gleaned Madeleine's secret child with Bond when she became Blofeld's therapist.

Related: No Time To Die's Madeleine Twist Pays Off Craig's Bond Casting Controversy

Blofeld didn't seem to understand that Safin was on a crusade to wipe out Spectre as revenge for Blofeld's agent, Mr. White, murdering his family. Even if Blofeld did realize what Safin was up to, Ernst was powerless to stop him from his cell, especially after Safin killed every Spectre agent and stole away Blofeld's one-eyed hired assassin, Primo (Dali Benssalah). In Spectre, Blofeld was at the height of his power and influence, and he had the hubris to match. But by the time James Bond confronts Blofeld in No Time To Die, Ernst was a pathetic shell of himself. Blofeld was still dangerous but neither Ernst nor Bond realized that Safin had targeted Blofeld through Bond and Madeleine. Blofeld's death, literally at Bond's hands, via the Heracles bioweapon was an inglorious end for the criminal mastermind.

Would Blofeld Have Been No Time To Die's Villain If Spectre Succeeded?

Had Spectre enjoyed the same acclaim and billion-dollar box office of Skyfall, it's quite possible Ernst Stavro Blofeld would have returned as the main villain of No Time To Die and Safin wouldn't exist at all. No Time To Die's story could potentially have remained largely intact by removing Safin and making Blofeld the mastermind behind everything. It's easy to see how Blofeld could have manipulated No Time To Die's events from prison before breaking free to threaten 007 in a final showdown.

Casting Academy Award-winner Christoph Waltz, who wowed audiences in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds and Django Unchained, as Blofeld in Spectre was likely seen as a sure thing. James Bond's producers must have been surprised and disappointed by the poor reception of Spectre and Christoph Waltz's Blofeld, even though the film grossed over $800-million worldwide. Ultimately, it's strange to see a villain as significant as Blofeld played by an actor of Christoph Waltz's caliber reduced to appearing in a single scene in No Time To Die that had to resolve all of the hatred and animosity between James Bond and Blofeld established by Spectre.

Would No Time To Die Be Better With Blofeld As The Real Villain?

no time to die Safins plan needed Blofeld

The desire to create a new villain in No Time To Die in Safin was likely born out of the fear that audiences would see Bond 25 as a retread Spectre if Blofeld was once again the primary bad guy. Safin was, indeed, a worthy villain for No Time To Die and Rami Malek played the deformed killer with odious malice. But Ernst Stavro Blofeld might still have been an even better adversary if he'd been unleashed. Blofeld already had the familiarity and history with Madeleine that the film manufactured between Swann and Safin whereas Lyutsifer didn't have the same personal vendetta against Bond himself. Unlike Safin, Blofeld had ample reason to hate both James and Madeleine and he wouldn't have thought twice about victimizing their daughter, Mathilde, and using the young girl against her parents. Threatening the world with a bioweapon is also something Blofeld is easily capable of.

However, because he didn't have deep personal ties to James Bond, Safin became a welcome throwback to the classic villains 007 faced in past movies, whose schemes Bond foiled because it was his job. In that way, Safin was a refreshing change after Spectre's twist that Blofeld and Bond are 'brothers' misfired. It's impossible to say for sure if No Time To Die would have been better if Blofeld was Bond's main adversary again. But Safin was a promise to wary audiences that Daniel Craig's James Bond would face a new evil in his final 007 film while No Time To Die still gave Blofeld a fitting ending to his villainy.

Next: No Time To Die: Every Plot Hole & Headscratcher