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Character sheet for the book and James Bond film From Russia with Love.
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Novel

    General G 

General Nicholai Sergenovich Grubozaboyschikov (G)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/954775_10151614874828106_511440654_n.jpg
"There will be...displeasure."

The only major character to be exclusive to the book, "G" is the Director of SMERSH who is feared by every agent of Soviet Intelligence. He is also Klebb and Grant's superior in the book and charges them to both eliminate and humiliate James Bond for his past foilings of SMERSH plots.


  • Adapted Out: He is replaced by Blofeld in the film, as SMERSH is replaced by SPECTRE. The highest-ranking member of any Soviet secret service depicted in the films is the much, much, more benign General Gogol.
  • Bald of Evil: His head is as shiny as a bleached skull, making his appear even more terrifying.
  • Big Ol' Eyebrows: Sports a pair, which also adds to the intimidation factor.
  • Chest of Medals: A paragraph is dedicated to what he has on his chest, naming a list of Russian honors, including, late in the list and through circumstances not elaborated on, two Western recognitions. These are likely from Allied cooperation during World War II.
  • Cluster F-Bomb: Bombards the assembled intelligence generals with Russian swear words when they only bring up Bond halfway through the meeting, starting with the Russian "Holy shit!"
  • Cut His Heart Out with a Spoon: He and his fellow intelligence big shots brainstorm a lot of creative deaths for Bond, before ultimately deciding on assassinating him and framing him for a sex scandal.
  • The Dragon: He is mentioned to be the personal attack dog of General Ivan Serov, the ultimate head of Soviet Intelligence, who, unlike G, really did exist.
  • Dragon-in-Chief: The various Soviet intelligence services act as the Soviet regime's main enforcers. G oversees all of them.
  • The Dreaded: His counterparts in the KGB, GRU, and RUMID all fear him. He is well aware of this and watches for signs of weakness when they have meetings, which he then in turn snitches on to Serov.
  • Evil Counterpart: To M, being a spy chief with a single letter for a codename.
  • Greater-Scope Villain: He is Klebb and Grant's commander, but otherwise has no part in their plot. In turn, Ivan Serov would be the Greater-Scope Villain to him, and Nikita Khrushchev to him.
  • It's Personal: This is G's default state in the novel With A Mind To Kill where holds great hatred towards Bond for having foiled his previous schemes and causing his political downfall.
  • Karma Houdini: He and Bond do not have any physical interaction. Trigger Mortis implies that he was forced to lay low after his scheme failed, but he then establishes himself as a major villain in With A Mind To Kill, wanting revenge against 007 for his political humiliation.
  • Overly Long Name: No wonder he goes by "G."
  • Put on a Bus: Trigger Mortis briefly mentions that he's laying low after the death of Red Grant and the failure of the mission, with a new man replacing him as head of SMERSH. His fate is unknown to MI6, however. This is subverted in With A Mind To Kill, where he emerges as one of the lead villains and harbors a grudge against Bond.
  • The Bus Came Back: He returns as one of the lead villains in the continuation novel With A Mind To Kill.
  • The Spymaster: One of four the Soviet Union has, and the most dangerous by far.
  • The Unfought: Bond only climbs the Sorting Algorithm of Evil as far as Klebb; he never meets G.
  • Villain Protagonist: He is the viewpoint character for chapters four through six.
  • You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: He keeps watch to see if any of the other intelligence branch heads' usefulness may be wearing thin.

    Red Grant 

Donovan "Red" Grant

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/redgra.jpg

"Clever, aren't you, Mister Secret Service? Think I'm barmy. Don't worry. I wouldn't be where I was if I was barmy."

A British soldier who defects to the Soviet Union after World War II and eventually becomes SMERSH's top assassin. Renamed "Krassno Granitsky" and given the code name "Granit."


  • Ax-Crazy: Submachine gun crazy, actually, as far as his favoured execution method is to go by.
  • Bad People Abuse Animals: At sixteen, he strangled a cat to satiate the 'feelings' and continued his lust killings initially with animals. This eventually escalated into killing off random people.
  • Bond Villain Stupidity: In the crucial moment of Kronsteen's carefully laid plan, the assassin "Red" Grant - an Irishman who joined the Soviets - makes the fatal mistake of engaging in prolonged crowing, boasting and gloating instead of just going ahead with his assigned task of killing Bond. This allows Bond the chance to improvise a desperate last-moment plan which works, enabling him to kill Grant and use the information which Grant carelessly revealed in order to catch the senior Soviet operative Rosa Klebb.
  • Book Dumb: He failed the political indoctrination portion of his training, but showed high skill levels in the technical subjects. As it turned out, this was exactly what his superiors in SMERSH wanted to hear. Once in the field, he shows that he's not just Dumb Muscle when he demonstrates skills that other henchmen in the franchise are incapable of.
  • Book Safe: He has a .25 pistol concealed in a copy of War and Peace, which fires if you press the spine in the right place.
  • Chainsaw Good: During one lunatic phase, he was allowed to execute political dissidents with a chainsaw.
  • Dirty Communists: In the book version, he defected to SMERSH just so he could become a paid assassin as compared to killing them for free like he did before.
  • The Dragon: For General G.
  • Dumb Blonde: Subverted. While he doesn't seem like the sharpest tool in the shed (for starters, he mixed up Irish history with Russian propaganda slogans during training), he's actually able to do things that other Bond villain henchmen are completely incapable of (like use stealth or hold down a cover). Grant also failed his written courses in training, but was otherwise great at code breaking, stalking, tracking, communications and graduated top of his class, a far cry from when he was near the very bottom at the start.
  • Faux Affably Evil: Still gregariously refers to Bond as "old man" after outing himself as an agent of SMERSH.
  • From Camouflage to Criminal: A British soldier and ex-IRA member who became an assassin for SMERSH.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: Killed with his own gun. This is ironic because the plan was to kill Bond with his own (Bond's) gun.
  • Lunacy: His killing urges coincide with the full moon.
  • Pop-Cultured Badass: He peppers his monologues to Bond with casual references to classic spy thrillers, such as Bulldog Drummond. He's also got several thrillers and pulp fiction works lining his bookshelf in the beginning of the book.
  • Psycho for Hire: SMERSH's first instinct is to have him killed, giving that he's an insane serial killer with no interest in the communist cause. But they realise that someone who can systematically kill without suffering mental breakdowns is useful for a system that regularly purges political undesirables.
  • Red Right Hand: Almost literally — his reddish skin tone is noted as marring what are otherwise extremely handsome physical features, giving a clue to his nature.
  • Serial Killer: He committed hundreds of murders in his hometown, mostly during a full moon, and barely got away when a giant manhunt started. However, nobody found out that the killer was him.
  • Teens Are Monsters: He began killing at age seventeen, murdering men and women alike. He became known as the "Moon Killer" in his native Ireland before joining the British army.
  • This Is Reality: When he's finally got Bond cornered, he warns Bond that "no Bulldog Drummond stuff" will save him. A very meta comment, since the Drummond stories were perhaps the biggest literary influence on Bond.
  • Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth:
    • Everyone he works for is absolutely terrified of him. Even the Soviet colonel who interviewed him after he defected from Britain seriously considered having Grant shot or deported to Siberia.
    • SMERSH also consider killing Grant straight off, but decide that a psychotic killer is useful as he won't suffer the Villainous Breakdown that normal people do when killing large numbers of people over a long period of time. They keep tight control of Grant during his lunatic phases, just using him for executions instead of missions.
  • Villain Protagonist: He is the viewpoint character for the first three chapters of the book.
  • Xanatos Gambit: In Grant's backstory, the Soviet colonel who considers his defection assigns him to kill an MI6 agent as proof of his sincerity and skill. From the KGB's perspective, it would still be a huge embarrassment for the West even if Grant doesn't succeed.

    Lieutenant-General Vozdvishensky 

Lieutenant-General Vozdvishensky

Lieutenant-General Vozdvishensky is the head of RUMID, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs intelligence department. He takes part in the plan to have 007 eliminated and MI6 humiliated, although he feels less than enthusiastic about the plan.


  • Adapted Out: He doesn't make any appearance in the film, as SMERSH is replaced by SPECTRE.
  • Deadpan Snarker: In the tense, backbiting atmosphere of the SMERSH meeting, he has room for a few wry remarks (mostly about American intelligence).
  • Defector from Decadence: As shown in the novel, Vozdvishensky felt reluctant about having Bond killed off despite signing off on the death warrant given he enjoyed his time as a diplomat while stationed in London. The Tie-In Novel for The Spy Who Loved Me reveals that he's since defected to the West, conducting a language symposium for employees of the British Ministry of Defence.
  • Token Good Teammate: He reluctantly signs off the death warrant against Bond despite his reservations about the plan to humiliate MI6. It's later revealed in the Tie-In Novel for The Spy Who Loved Me that he's since defected to England.

Film

MI6

Bond's Allies

    Tatiana Romanova 

Tatiana "Tania" Romanova

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/taniaromanova.jpg
"The mechanism is... Oh James, James... Will you make love to me all the time in England?"

Played by: Daniela Bianchi (film), Olga Fedori (BBC Radio 4 play)

"I am glad you have come back, James. And now we must eat and drink and start our lives again."

A corporal in Soviet Army Intelligence, assigned to work in the Soviet Embassy in Istanbul as a cipher clerk. Because of her beauty, Rosa Klebb assigns her the mission of seducing Bond and having him take her to England to deliver a LEKTOR code machine.


  • Adaptation Dye-Job: She's a brunette in the book, and a blonde in the film.
  • Affectionate Nickname: Her friends call her "Tania".
  • Blue Blood: In the book, she is a distant member of the House of Romanov though her grandparents, though she doesn't frequent the buivshi circles.
  • Dream-Crushing Handicap: Not exactly a handicap, but she says that when she was younger, she dreamed of becoming a ballerina. She was rejected when she grew an inch above regulation (the book mentions the height limit is five foot six inches).
  • Fake Defector: She's told that her mission was to become one of these to leak false intelligence to the West. Her mission is actually a set up to lure Bond into a situation where SMERSH can kill both of them in a manner that embarrasses the British government.
  • Fake Russian: In the film, she's played by Daniela Bianchi, who's Italian.
  • Famous-Named Foreigner: Shares a surname with the Russian royal family. In the book, it's stated that her grandparents were distantly related to them. Kronsteen comments that it seems odd that a Romanov should be involved in SMERSH's plot.
  • Girl of the Week: The Bond Girl for this film.
  • Leg Focus: Bond is using a periscope installed under the Soviet embassy to spy on a meeting inside, when she enters. He can't see her face from his angle, but what he can see impresses him greatly.
    Karim Bey: How does she look to you?
    James Bond: Well from this angle, things are shaping up nicely.
  • Ms. Fanservice: Rosa Klebb chooses her specifically because she's the most attractive agent at her disposal to lure Bond. And most of Tania's screentime has her in nighties later on.
  • Nice Girl: She is genuinely pleasant, kind, and friendly.
  • Ready for Lovemaking: Her intro to Bond (which was used to audition the Bond Girls by the producers).
  • Same Language Dub: Her English was fine, but Bianchi's thick Italian accent wasn't.
  • Sensual Slavs: She's a sexy Russian woman stationed in Istanbul.
  • Sex–Face Turn: Was initially pretending to be in love with James Bond, but (more obviously in the movie) fell for him for real after having sex with him.
  • Sexy Secretary: Sexy cipher clerk.
  • Stocking Filler: She wears black silk stockings (as per the original scene in the book) as part of her outfit to seduce Bond. They're only very briefly seen in the movie as released, but there are a number of photos of Daniela Bianchi (as Tatiana) wearing these stockings in the screen-test version of the scene, notably when Bond pulls the bedsheet off Tatiana to reveal her stockinged legs.
  • Textual Celebrity Resemblance: In the novel, she bore a strong resemblance to a young Greta Garbo, with a wide mouth and dark brown hair intentionally styled after the Swedish-born actress.
  • Took a Level in Badass: In the comic book James Bond 007: Light of My Death, she returns as a fully trained secret agent to help Bond on a mission.
  • Trope Codifier: Her bedroom encounter with James is used to screen-test future Bonds and Bond Girls.
  • Unwitting Pawn: She carries out the mission given to her by Rosa Klebb thinking that Klebb's still from the Soviet government, without realizing that Klebb has long ago defected to SPECTRE and that she ordered Red Grant to kill her and Bond and then make it look like it was a murder-suicide. In the book, she is made aware that she's taking part in a plot to give false information to the West, but not that the plan is for her to be killed alongside Bond.

    Kerim Bey 

Ali Kerim Bey

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kerimbey.jpg
"Ah, the old game: give a wolf a taste and then leave him hungry."

Played by: Pedro Armendariz

"The Iron Crab will get me as it got my father. But I am not afraid of The Crab. At least I shall have died from an honourable disease. Perhaps they will put on my tombstone 'This Man Died From Living Too Much'."

A former circus strongman, he is MI6's head of Station T in Istanbul. He is a wise, good natured man whom Bond immediately takes a liking to.


  • Abusive Parents: We get to learn his rather twisted backstory in the book. His father was a brutish man who stole other men's wives and thrashed his kids for discipline. Nevertheless his community respected him (as does Kerim in an odd way) due to being a poor village that prized strength.
  • Adaptational Heroism: Calling Kerim's character in the book a "bad guy" is probably a stretch, but the film still omits most of his less savory character traits, most infamously his cheery endorsement of the "Not If They Enjoyed It" Rationalization.
  • Adaptation Name Change: His given name was changed from "Darko" to "Ali" in the film, possibly because the context of "Darko" (which is exactly what you think it is) would be uncomfortable even for 1963.
  • Cool Old Guy: A cool guy, and Armendáriz's age was showing.
  • Family Business: Most of his employees are his sons (and he has a lot).
  • The Hedonist: One gets the distinct impression that if the government were to pay him to wallow in wine and women all day, he'd jump at the chance. As it stands, though, he's very good at what he does.
  • In the Back: How Grant kills him.
  • The Lancer: To Bond.
  • The Patriarch: Exclusively employs family members, reasoning they're the only people you can trust in the spying business. This, of course, has the side effect of him being at least as promiscuous as Bond is.
  • Pornstache: Look at the picture.
  • Really Gets Around: Probably the only Bond character who gets more than Bond. This is a matter of necessity, as a large family means a lot of underlings who are guarenteed to be loyal to him.
    Kerim: [about to sleep with his mistress] Back to the salt mines...
  • Sacrificial Lion: Killed by Grant on the Orient Express.
  • This Is Something He's Got to Do Himself: Even though his arm is injured he insists on pulling the trigger on Bond's sniper rifle to kill his old enemy, the Bulgarian agent Krilencu.
    "Arm or no arm, I have to pull that trigger."
  • Unscrupulous Hero: He's sexist, hedonistic, and willing to do all sorts of dubiously-moral deeds, but is also the most loyal and competent intelligence agent in Turkey. Bond would later encounter similar "bad good guy" characters such as Marc-Ange Draco and Tiger Tanaka.

Villains

SPECTRE

    Rosa Klebb 

Colonel Rosa Klebb / SPECTRE Number Three

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rosaklebb.png
"Come, come, my dear. You're very fortunate to have been chosen for such a simple, delightful duty."

Played by: Lotte Lenya

"Stop that nonsense. In five minutes I could have those names from you, or anything else I wish to know. You are playing a dangerous game with me, Comrade. My patience will not last forever."

In the movie, Rosa Klebb is depicted as a former SMERSH agent who has defected to become a member of SPECTRE (Blofeld refers to her as "Number 3"). She uses Kronsteen's plans to obtain the Lektor and kill Bond. In the book, she's SMERSH's Head of Operations and is tasked with putting Kronsteen's plan into action. In both, she deceives Tatiana Romanova into helping Bond steal the Lektor, and then sends Red Grant to kill Bond.


  • Adaptational Attractiveness: She's described as "toad-like" in the novel. She's nowhere near as hideous-looking in the film.
  • Adaptational Sexuality: The film eliminates her scene from the book of outright trying to seduce Tatiana. In the movie she plays uncomfortably with Tatiana's hair while talking of "a labour of love".
  • Adaptational Wimp: In the book, she managed to get a hit on Bond with the poisoned shoe and knocked him out until the next installment. Here, Bond manages to keep her at bay and without getting hit before Tania kills Klebb.
  • Animal Motifs: She's described as "toad-like" in the novel. She's also described as having "pale, thick, chicken's skin".
  • Armed Legs: Rosa Klebb has poisoned blades contained in her shoes.
  • The Baroness: An iconic example and the codifier for the "Klebb" type. She's a stone-faced, domineering and fully committed to accomplishing SPECTRE's goals by whatever means necessary.
  • Big Bad: While she is working under Blofeld, she is the primary villain of this movie and the one in charge of executing SPECTRE's plan to obtain the Lektor and kill James Bond.
  • Blofeld Ploy: She's spared and given a last chance.
  • Bus Crash: She actually survives the end of the book, and is arrested by the Deuxieme Bureau. At the beginning of Dr. No, it's offhandedly mentioned she died in prison, and she is then never brought up again. Even the cause of her death is unrevealed.
  • Butch Lesbian: She is described in the book as hard, almost masculine in appearance, coupled with several instances when she touches Tatiana and comments on her beauty. She, at one point, attempts to instigate congress between her and Tatiana, who runs out of the room screaming when she sees Klebb wearing lingerie.
  • Co-Dragons: She and Kronsteen head different departments, but both report to SPECTRE Number One.
  • Death by Adaptation: In the book, she is merely taken into custody by the French. The next book, Dr. No, casually mentions that "she died" (implicitly under interrogation). In the film, she is shot dead during her final confrontation with Bond.
  • Depraved Bisexual: She apparently had an affair with Spanish Communist leader Andrés Nin (a historical figure), but was also pretty blatantly coming on to Tatiana.
  • Dies Differently in Adaptation: Her fate in the novel is being arrested, with the following book Dr. No revealing that she died in custody. In the film, Tatiana shoots her.
  • Dirty Old Woman: Implied to be a depraved lesbian.
  • The Dreaded: In the book, various stories surround her status as a Torture Technician in the building she works. People feel much safer when she is in her office.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: She was visibly terrified and sweating when Blofeld ordered the death of Kronsteen.
  • Evil Redhead: Evil and has red hair.
  • Fan Disservice: We get to read a description of her in her lingerie in the book. Eeeeew.
  • Fatal Flaw: Not properly vetting her people. Kronsteen says that his plan went wrong when she chose Grant as Bond's assassin, and he has a point. She could have investigated Grant better and possibly uncovered his fatal flaw (which happened to be Greed), even though on paper he was totally the right guy.
  • Gonky Femme: She is described in quite ugly terms in the book, but when Tatiana is ordered to report to Klebb's apartment for a late night briefing, Klebb is dressed in a babydoll-ish nightie and giggly tries to seduce Tatiana.
  • Groin Attack: She attempts to be on the giving end when she tries to kill Bond at the end by kicking him in the crotch with her poison tipped shoe.
  • Hate Sink: She's a very cruel, hateful, malevolent, and all-around despicable bitch.
  • The Heavy: While Grant carries the plot in the physical sense, it's Klebb who sets up SPECTRE's plan at the beginning of the movie and the functional Big Bad throughout it, even showing up at the end to make a last-ditch effort to ensure the plan succeeds.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: Shot by her own henchwoman in the climax, with the gun she brought.
  • Horrible Judge of Character: Her choice of people wind up derailing SPECTRE's plan. She thought Tatiana would be loyal enough to entrap James Bond, but didn't count on her actually falling for him, while it never occurred to her that hiring a psychopath like Grant might be a bad idea.
  • Improbable Weapon User: The famous spring-loaded knife-tipped shoe she uses against Bond.
  • Karmic Death: Shot through the heart by her own protege, who had really fallen for the man she had groomed her to fake falling for.
  • Nerd Glasses: She wears particularly hideous thick-framed and thick-lensed glasses in many scenes.
  • Never Mess with Granny: In the book, she is a late middle-aged Big Bad who can dish out serious hurt and fights dirty.
  • An Offer You Can't Refuse: She gives Tatiana the choice of either participating in her honey trap of James Bond, or get shot.
  • Older Than They Look: In the book, she's mentioned to be in her forties, but looks much older. Why is never explained.
  • Poisoned Weapons: She has a poisoned dagger in the toe of her shoe. At the end of the film, she has a kicking fight with James Bond who pushes her against the wall with a chair until Tatiana Romanova shoots her.
  • Pragmatic Villainy: After Grant and Morzeny's attempts to capture Bond and retrieve the Lektor end up costing them their lives, Klebb takes the much simpler step of disguising herself as a maid to sneak into Bond's hotel suite and quietly steal the Lektor. It nearly works, too, only failing firstly because of Bond walking back in at an inconvenient moment, and then Tatiana recognizing her.
  • Psycho Lesbian: Her sexuality is kept ambiguous in the film but there's some hints towards it. Not so much in the book, in which... well, it's a lot more overt.
  • Ready for Lovemaking: In the book, she tries to seduce Tatiana by putting on nighties and posing seductively on a sofa, inviting her to come beside her. Tatiana runs away in revulsion. Later, Tatiana reclines invitingly under the bedsheets in Bond's hotel room (nude except for choker and stockings) as part of her seduction of 007.
  • Renegade Russian: Defected from SMERSH in the movie. Totally loyal in the book.
  • Room Disservice/Janitor Impersonation Infiltration: Her last gambit to kill Bond and steal the McGuffin is to disguise herself as a hotel maid.
  • Shoe Phone: In the book, she has a machine gun built into her phone.
  • Team Member in the Adaptation: Goes from being a member of SMERSH in the novel to SPECTRE in the film.
  • Torture Technician: In the novel, she has a reputation for overseeing the interrogations of enemy agents in which, after exacting various methods of torture on the target, she speaks to them in a warm and motherly tone in an unusual and apparently effective method of extracting necessary information.
  • Tricked-Out Shoes: She has a poisonous blade in her shoe.
  • Villainous Breakdown: She's mostly calm throughout the movie, until she fights Bond, where's she noticeably starts to lose it and become more anxious. Justified in that if she fails to kill Bond and get the Lektor, she'll end up like Kronsteen.
  • Whip of Dominance: The film adaptation gives her a riding crop during the scene where she interrogates Tatiana, to make her look even more authoritarian and imposing. Klebb uses it to great effect, lashing it on the table or in the chair when she wants to make a point.

    Kronsteen 

Tov Kronsteen / SPECTRE Number Five

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kronsteen.jpg
"I have anticipated every possible variation of counter move."

Played by: Vladek Sheybal

"I shall proceed to devise such a trap. For the present, I can only say that if the bait is successful in attracting its prey, we are then likely to require an assassin with a perfect command of the English language."

The head of planning for SPECTRE and a chess master, and a high-ranking SMERSH agent in the book. He devised a plan to lure James Bond into Turkey and then kill him, humiliating the British government and getting revenge for the death of Dr. No. In the film, when the plan fails, he is killed with a spring-loaded, poison-tipped knife concealed in a shoe.


  • Adaptational Karma: There is no mention of anything happening to Kronsteen, either from MI6 for trying to kill one of their agents or from SMERSH for failing in the book. He doesn't get the same treatment in the movie adaptation.
  • Adaptational Villainy: He's not a nice man in the book, but he's still just a Soviet Colonel doing his job. The film makes him into a board member for the world's most powerful terrorism-for-hire organization and gives him about a million levels in smugness.
  • Ambiguously Jewish: He has a first name in the book, "Tov", which is a Jewish name.
  • Ascended Extra: He has an expanded role in the movie, being that he becomes the secondary antagonist, and is executed by Blofeld for being a Smug Snake.
  • Batman Gambit: His plan revolves around making several deductions about how the British intelligence will act (such as them suspecting a trap but going along with it anyway in the hope of getting a Lektor, and them sending James Bond). All of his predictions come true.
  • Blofeld Ploy: Blofeld's first victim; it looks like Klebb will get the poison-knife kick, only for Morzeny to kick Kronsteen instead.
  • The Chessmaster: He is SPECTRE's chief strategist, and also a literal chess master. In the book, he gets a summons from SMERSH during a championship match but waits to obey it until he's won, risking his superiors' displeasure and possibly his life. They let it slide after he explains that he would have raised suspicion by suddenly resigning the match.
  • Co-Dragons: He and Rosa Klebb head different departments, but both report to SPECTRE Number One.
  • Death by Adaptation: He doesn't die in the book; he fears that he will by delaying the SMERSH meeting to finish his chess match, but he's spared by General G. In the film, he's killed by a poisoned dagger as punishment.
  • Death by Irony: He was correct- it WAS Klebb who was at fault (or at least, more at fault) in the end, as the assassin she chose fatally chose to mock and toy with Bond rather than kill him quickly. Unfortunately, either Blofeld didn't realise that and honestly thought it was him who screwed up, or- more likely- he was annoyed with how smugly certain Kronsteen was being and made an example of him for the crime of not fearing the boss enough.
  • Dirty Coward: While Kronsteen is correct that Klebb's man Grant was the reason the plan failed, he had no proof or actual knowledge that this was the case, so blaming Klebb comes across as little more than arrogance and Kronsteen trying to save his own neck at her expense.
  • Establishing Character Moment: In the movie, we're first introduced to him in the middle of a chess match. When he received the message from SPECTRE to report in at once, he very calmly disposes of the message, and then very calmly crushes his opponent with a single move. It demonstrates the reasons he's so dangerous: not only is he very smart, but he loves to toy with his opponents and have a little fun with them. When he's done screwing around, heads roll.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Averted, actually; it's mentioned that he has a wife and children in the book, but his years as a merciless Soviet intelligence agent has left him unable to see them, or anyone, really, as anything other than pieces on a chessboard. Furthermore, depending on what he exactly meant by having to "put one of [his] children in hospital" as a cover for his being summoned away from a chess tournament in the book, it's possible he's willing to hurt his own family to protect his cover.
  • Evil Genius: As SPECTRE's "director of planning", he's one of their top evil geniuses and charged with planning out criminal operations for them. In the movie specifically, he's shown as the mastermind behind the Lektor decoder plot.
  • Fatal Flaw: His arrogance and smugness bite him hard in the ass. When asked by Blofeld to defend his plan, he could with ease, but doesn't think it's necessary. Instead, he simply remarks, "Who is Bond, compared with Kronsteen?" That's a bunk answer and it lets Klebb off the hook. The competition wasn't between Bond and Kronsteen, it was between Bond and Grant. Kronsteen stupidly lets Klebb change the parameters of the argument and pays for it with his life.
  • Jerkass Has a Point: Although he's blatantly trying to throw Klebb under the bus, Kronsteen isn't wrong when he suggests that it was the failure of Klebb's man Grant that led to the Evil Plan failing (of course, neither he nor Klebb or even Blofeld were aware of this).
  • Know-Nothing Know-It-All: Deconstructed, as his failure to obtain the facts about Q Branch and the fact that he wasn't prepared for Bond comes back to bite him dearly.
  • Never My Fault: Denies any responsibility in the failure of the plot to kill Bond and obtain the Lektor. In Kronsteen's defence, it was actually Grant's fault, but all any of them knew was that Grant had been killed while Bond escaped, so the trope still applies to an extent.
  • Politically Incorrect Villain: In the book, he's implied to have a dim view of non-Russian minorities within the Soviet Union. After beating his opponent Makharov, the Georgian chess champion, his first thought is that Makharov should go back to Georgia and stay there.
  • Pride: This is his Fatal Flaw and it costs him dearly, when his plans to kill Bond and get the Lektor fail.
  • Right for the Wrong Reasons: Kronsteen's assumption that Grant bungled the job is at least partly accurate, but his conclusion is based on sheer arrogance, not actual evidence.
  • Serious Business: In the book, he endangers his life by ignoring a message from General G to meet at once, because he has to finish a chess tournament that would make him Grandmaster. He justifies his action by claiming security considerations — his fans are as dedicated to the 'People's Sport' as he is, and would realize he'd only forfeit the match if he was summoned by a powerful official.
  • Smart People Play Chess: A literal chessmaster in both the book and the film, and SPECTRE's chief strategist. In the book, he's been Chess Champion of Moscow for two consecutive years, and upon winning his game is implied to become the future Grandmaster of Russian Chess. He loves the game and appreciates his fans so much that he defies a direct order to attend a SMERSH meeting to finish the match.
  • Smug Snake: Excessively arrogant in the film, to the point where not even Klebb likes him. It's part of what gets him killed; rather than offer any kind of defense for his plan's failure, Kronsteen just insists it was perfect and tries to throw Klebb under the bus without any actual evidence to support it and expects Blofeld to take his side anyway (ironically, the mission failing was at least partly her fault, but no one present could have known that). As such, Blofeld has Kronsteen killed for both his failure and his arrogance, as well as making an example to motivate Klebb.
  • The Strategist: The brain behind the SPECTRE operation to get rid of Bond and acquire a Soviet coding machine.
  • Team Member in the Adaptation: Goes from being a member of SMERSH in the novel to SPECTRE in the film.
  • Underestimating Badassery: Kronsteen wasn't prepared for Bond, and missing the facts about Q Branch, a part of MI6 he didn't research, earns him a poisoned dagger in the leg.
  • Villain with Good Publicity: In the book, he's a famous Russian chess champion who's about to become Grandmaster and has enough admirers to rival any star athlete's, with his games being household talk, sports commentary and the source of great excitement all around the Soviet Union. He even has his own nickname, the Wizard of Ice.
  • Wicked Cultured: A member of SMERSH in the book and SPECTRE in the movie, and a chess prodigy who is celebrated as a sporting hero and genius in the Soviet Union.
  • Would Hurt a Child: Suggested in the book, depending on what he meant by having to "put a child into hospital" to support his story that one of his children had fallen gravely ill to force him to leave an important chess championship as quickly as he did, although all this is because he's mortally terrified of what the office might do to him simply for not leaving immediately (as opposed to staying long enough to finish the game) without one hell of an excuse.
  • You Have Failed Me: Blofeld has him killed when his plan to assassinate Bond and obtain the Lektor fails.

    Red Grant 

Donald "Red" Grant

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/redgrant.png
"You may know the right wines, but you're the one on your knees. How does it feel, old man?"

Played by: Robert Shaw

Along with Oddjob, Baron Samedi and Jaws, he is one of the most iconic Bond villain henchmen. Grant is a tall, burly, blond SPECTRE agent (SMERSH in the books) and a sadistic, ruthless and psychotic killer. Grant's backstory in the movie and book are completely different but both effectively amount to: "This is a horrible person you don't want to mess with".


  • Adaptational Attractiveness: He lacks the red-tinted skin that was a Red Right Hand in the books.
  • Adaptational Name Change: His first name was changed from Donovan to Donald.
  • Adaptational Weapon Swap: In the novel, he killed people with a gun concealed in a copy of War and Peace. In the film, he uses a wristwatch containing a garrotte wire.
  • Alone with the Psycho: Again, one of the only times Bond is totally gotten the drop on by an enemy.
  • Badass Normal: Unlike later notable Bond henchmen, he doesn't have any fancy gimmicks or superhuman attributes. Unlike Giant Mook guys like Hans or Kriegler, he's not even noticeably larger than Bond either (in fact, Robert Shaw was shorter than Sean Connery). He's just a ruthless, extremely efficient covert operative, just like Bond himself.
  • Berserk Button: The one time he loses his cool is following Bond's "lunatic asylum" insult. His reaction is to slap Bond across the face.
  • Bond Villain Stupidity: Robert Shaw's chilling, brilliant performance obscures the fact that Grant may be the single most egregious example in the entire series. For once, shooting Bond is the actual plan, but Grant manages to muck it up with an inexcusable bout of Evil Gloating and Just Between You and Me. Further, after revealing to Bond that he's going to kill him and Tatiana and make it look like Bond committed murder-suicide, Grant gloats, "The first one [bullet] won't kill you. Not the second. Not even the third. Not till you crawl over here and kiss my foot!" Of course, if Grant had succeeded in doing this, with four or more bullets in Bond's dead body, it wouldn't look like a suicide. Justified in that its mentioned he used to be in an insane asylum—beneath his seemingly professional exterior, he's just a homicidal lunatic. Also, Blofeld explicitly mentions that he wants Bond's death particularly humiliating and painful which fits Grant's methods in the scene pretty solidly so he might just be following orders.
  • The Brute: He's tall, sturdy enough to withstand a brass knuckle to the chest, and serves as an assassin for SPECTRE.
  • Can't Kill You, Still Need You: During the fight in the Gypsy camp, he snipes a knife-wielding Bulgar who rushed Bond from behind, as it doesn't suit SPECTRE's plan to have Bond dead at that point.
  • Dies Differently in Adaptation: In the novel, Bond shoots him. In the film, he strangles him with his own garotte wire.
  • The Dragon: He's the one Rosa Klebb selects to carry out SPECTRE's plan in the movie.
  • Drink-Based Characterization: He orders a Chianti with his grilled soul, albeit red instead of white. This tips Bond off that he's an imposter.
  • Establishing Character Moment: He is introduced hunting down and killing a fake James Bond in a training exercise, demonstrating his cunning and brutality.
  • Evil Counterpart: To Bond. Both are highly skilled operatives who loyally serve a shadowy organization, equally skilled in combat and make good use of gadgets; Grant has a watch concealing a garrote and Bond has the suitcase, among others.
  • Evil Gloating: Lampshaded:
    I don't mind talking. I get a kick out of watching the great James Bond find out what a bloody fool he's been making of himself.
  • Fatal Flaw: His greed proves to be this in the film. For all the Bond Villain Stupidity mentioned elsewhere, none of it would actually have mattered if Bond hadn't been able to dupe him into trying to steal the fifty gold sovereigns (little more than $1000 in 2019 terms) from one of the two field equipment briefcases, which causes him to unwittingly activate a tear gas cartridge that gives Bond the opening he needs to take it down.
  • Faux Affably Evil: Still gregariously refers to Bond as "old man" after outing himself as an agent of SPECTRE.
  • Gadget Watches: He kills people with a garotte concealed in his wristwatch.
  • Genius Bruiser: He's quite the Manipulative Bastard.
    • Sets up the entire Krilencu subplot by killing a Russian agent's driver, knowing that Krilencu would try to bomb Kerim's office.
    • Follows Bond and Kerim to the gypsy camp, where he saves Bond's life from an attack from behind. This ensures that after Kerim kills Krilencu, Bond would return to his hotel, where he would meet Tanya. They would be filmed by Klebb.
    • Ensures that Bond gets Tania's map by killing the Russian agent who gets his hands on it.
    • Compromises the secrecy of Bond's escape by killing Kerim and Benz (a Russian security agent who follows Bond, Kerim and Tania onto the train and is overpowered by the former two), forcing Bond to send for another agent, whom he kills and impersonates (Captain Nash). Bond is entirely fooled until Grant has pulled a gun on him.
  • Greed: Not above trying to take money from his targets. This proves to be his Achilles' Heel in the film.
  • Guns Akimbo: Of the "New York Reload" type. Grant carries at least two pistols, a Mauser C96 and a Llama XVIII 25-caliber pistol in an ankle holster. The latter serves as an effective bludgeon when he stuns Bond on the Orient Express via Tap on the Head.
  • The Heavy: Red Grant is the primary operative charged with carrying out SPECTRE's plan and the main obstacle James Bond faces for most of the movie, driving SPECTRE's actions from when Bond arrives in Istanbul to the Orient Express. After he was killed with about 20 minutes left in the film, the only obstacle left was the helicopter Mooks, while the boats were called in last-minute.
  • Hero Killer: His task is to kill James Bond, so we already know he's going to be dangerous. Grant kills agents on both sides of the Cold War left and right, but he cements his status as a Hero Killer when he kills Kerim on the Orient Express.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: Killed with his own garrote. This is ironic because the plan was to kill Bond with his own (Bond's) gun.
  • I Am Very British: While masquerading as Nash, he puts on a British accent and peppers his speech with stereotypical Briticisms in an attempt to maintain his cover. Lampshaded by Bond once he's caught on to the ruse.
    James Bond:You won't be needing this, 'old man'
  • Impersonation Gambit: He takes the place of Bond's Orient Express contact Captain Nash.
  • Imposter Forgot One Detail: He pretends to be a British agent, but consumes red wine with fish, something a Brit would never do. He also says "cheero" instead of "cheerio", and "old man" instead of "old chap". Bond doesn't put two and two together until after Grant gets the drop on him, then curses himself for missing it.
  • I Kiss Your Foot: He is enough of a psycho sadist that merely killing Bond wouldn't be enough, so he intends to force Bond to perform this trope on him:
    The first shot won't kill you. Neither will the second, nor the third...not until you crawl over here and kiss my foot!
  • Just Between You and Me: While Bond actually works out SPECTRE's plan entirely by himself (once he's told it is SPECTRE, that is), Grant is perfectly happy to fill in the details for Bond while he has him cornered at gunpoint.
  • Karmic Death:
    • Killed going for some gold coins.
    • Also getting choked out by his own garrote.
  • Kneel Before Zod: The first thing he does to James Bond when he captures him:
    Grant: All right, now get up on your knees. Put your hands in your pockets. Keep them there.
    Bond: Red wine with fish. That should have told me something.
    Grant: You may know the right wines, but you're the one on your knees. How does it feel, old man?
    [...]
    Grant: The first one won't kill you. Not the second. Not even the third. Not till you crawl over here and you kiss my foot.
  • Light Is Not Good: He's a blond henchman for SPECTRE. Grant wound up as the first of several blond henchmen that Bond would fight throughout the rest of the series, such as Hans, Eric Kriegler, Necros, and Stamper.
  • Made of Iron: Doesn't flinch when hit in the stomach by a pair of brass knuckles. This is a slight exaggeration from the book, where he doubles over slightly and stands upright again, looking pissed, from a blow that the narration notes would have left any normal man cringing helplessly on the floor. Averted when he actually fights Bond towards the end of the film; he and Bond trade blows on a fairly even basis, and he doesn't No-Sell hits like later Giant Mook henchmen like Odd Job, Jaws, Hans, Kriegler, or Mr. Hinx do (though he powers through Bond's attempt at a Neck Snap and quickly recovers from a double-handed chop to the throat).
  • Master Actor: Impersonates a MI6 agent (Captain Nash) by adopting an upper-class accent, as well as the man's hat and travelling case. Bond is entirely fooled until Grant has him at gunpoint. Downplayed in the book, where Bond is still fooled by the impersonation, but senses something is badly wrong.
  • Mr. Fanservice: Practically alone amongst male Bond villains, Grant is actually incredibly handsome and in excellent shape. He even gets a scene where he's wearing nothing but a towel (and not a very big one at that) during some downtime with his glistening physique on full display.
  • Paper-Thin Disguise: His disguise as Captain Nash in the film is simply Nash's hat, briefcase, and an upper-class English accent. And it works. On Bond. In the book, it's a little more complicated, with a macintosh and suit and special tie, but it still works on Bond. It does somewhat help that Grant is actually originally English (one of the criteria requested by Kronsteen) and lacks any glaringly obvious red flags in terms of appearance.
  • The Paranoiac: Described as a particularly murderous version of this.
  • Psycho for Hire: He's a homicidal paranoiac on the service of a criminal organization.
  • The Quiet One: Bordering on The Voiceless. He does not speak for most of the movie, and when he finally does, it's to imitate someone he has just murdered.
    • Ironically, once he starts talking for real in his last scene, he won't shut up.
  • Razor Floss: His garrote, which is concealed in his watch. Bond uses this to strangle him to death.
  • Sadist: As shown with the aforementioned "Kiss my foot!" line and, if you look closely, you can see a Slasher Smile on his face as he prepares to use his garrote on Bond.
  • Shadow Archetype: Red Grant and Bond are both loyal agents, and are blunt instruments serving their respective organizations. Also, both are highly skilled, great physical combatants, and utilized gadgets in their respective arsenals. However, he is Bond without the moral restraint.
  • Slasher Smile: He has one on his face as he prepares to use his garrote on Bond.
  • Slipping a Mickey: He puts chloral hydrate in Tatiana's drink.
  • Team Member in the Adaptation: Goes from being a member of SMERSH in the novel to SPECTRE in the film.
  • Unbuilt Trope: Of the classic Bond henchman, he was mostly chosen for his strength and effectiveness as a killer with no attention payed to his sanity or control over his desires. This leads him to try and kill Bond in a way that would ruin the plan and to make a mistake that allows Bond to kill him. Also, while he's shown to be extremely fit and physically disciplined, he's not overwhelmingly physically superior to Bond or Made of Iron to the ludicrous degree of later major henchmen.
  • Ur-Example: He's the earliest example of the classic Bond henchman in the films being a big, quiet, strong, and having a unique weapon, unlike later examples he does talk though only really at the end.
  • Villain Ball: He could have easily shot Bond at any point, killed Tatiana, made it look like a murder suicide and carried out the plan without a problem. Instead he chose to gloat and be greedy, letting Bond trick him. Even if he hadn't, his initial plan of shooting Bond until Bond kissed his feet would have probably put the plans in serious danger. This is what you get when you hire a semi-intelligent sadistic psychopath to be your primary assassin, KGB.
  • Villainous Rescue: He shoots a knife-wielding Bulgar who charges up behind Bond.
    Grant: I've been your guardian angel. Saved your life at the Gypsy camp.
  • Wicked Pretentious: Grant's lack of knowledge about wine is one of the hints about his true nature that Bond kicks himself for missing.
  • You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: He states this to Bond on the train. The only reason SPECTRE kept Bond alive up to that point was for him to get the Lektor, and with it within their grasp, Bond and Tatiana are now expendable (That and the fact that the half the point of the mission was to kill Bond in a way that would embarrass MI6, which Grant was now set up to do). Unfortunately for SPECTRE, things don't go as planned.

    Morzeny 

Morzeny

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/morzeny.png
"Grant's one of our best men. Homicidal paranoiac, superb material. His response to our training and indoctrination have been remarkable."

Played by: Walter Gotell

The man in charge of training the SPECTRE mooks. He will also step in for ground operations when needed.


  • Armed Legs: Like Klebb, he conceals a poisoned knife blade in his shoe, which he uses to execute Kronsteen.
  • Bald of Evil: Fits the criteria.
  • The Dragon: He's Blofeld's go-to guy for executing his minions for failure, and the one sent in after Bond at the climax when Red Grant gets killed.
  • Drill Sergeant Nasty: Runs the training facility for SPECTRE mooks.
  • Good Scars, Evil Scars: Has an X-shaped scar on the left side of his face.
  • Man on Fire: Dies when he and his men are engulfed in flames created by Bond during the boat chase (and the actor actually had burns while shooting).
  • Mook Lieutenant: He trains mooks for SPECTRE. Late in the film, he leads a squadron of speedboats to take down Bond.
  • We Have Reserves: Likes to use "live targets" for training. Just ask the faux James Bond in the opening sequence.

    Fake James Bond 

The Fake James Bond

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fauxbond_90.jpg
Click here to see him with the Bond mask

Played by: Sean Connery (until the unmasking), John Ketteringham (post-unmasking)

A man wearing a latex mask imitating James Bond's face. He serves as a live target practice for SPECTRE killer Red Grant.


  • Deathly Unmasking: The viewer is led to believe it's Bond who dies when Grant strangles him. Then he's revealed to be someone else when the latex mask imitating Bond is removed from his face by Morzeny.
  • Latex Perfection: He wears a latex mask that perfectly imitates Bond's face and is easily removable.
  • No Name Given: His name is never mentioned.
  • Sharp-Dressed Man: Wears a black tuxedo and a bowtie just like the ones Bond uses to go at the casino or at formal events.
  • We Hardly Knew Ye: Dies strangled by Grant roughly two minutes and a half into the film.
  • You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Whoever he was, SPECTRE intended for him to be killed.

Other Villains

    Krilencu 

Krilencu

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/krilencu.jpg

Played by: Fred Haggerty

"The man is a gangster. A Bulgarian 'refugee' named Krilencu. I shall have to have a reckoning with him."
Kerim Bey, From Russia with Love

A Bulgarian killer who is employed by the Soviets in Istanbul.


  • Arch-Enemy: The mortal enemy of Kerim Bey.
  • Ax-Crazy: Kerim mentions he kills for pleasure.
  • Disney Villain Death: Kerim snipes him in the back and he falls 30 feet to the pavement below.
  • Everyone Has Standards: His employers, judging by the conversation Bond and Kerim see in the embassy, are not happy with him for trying to blow up Kerim.
  • Evil Counterpart: Kerim Bey tells Bond Krilencu uses his Bulgarian henchmen the same way he uses his Gypsy allies.
  • Mad Bomber: Tries to blow up Kerim's office after Grant kills a Russian driver and blames it on the British.
  • Psycho for Hire: He kills for pleasure.
  • Throwing Your Sword Always Works: Kills a guard at the gypsy camp by throwing a knife into his chest.

Other Characters

    Zora and Vida 

Zora and Vida

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/zora_and_vida.jpg
Zora (top) and Vida (bottom)

Played by: Martine Beswick (Zora) and Aliza Gur (Vida)

Two Gypsy women who are in love in the same man, the chief's son. To decide who will ultimately win his hand, the pair engage in a hand-to-hand fight to the death. Just as Vida appears to gain the upper hand and prepares to bludgeon Zora with a wine bottle, the fight is interrupted by Krilencu and his men, who intend to kill Ali Kerim Bey. During the battle that follows, James Bond saves the chief's life, who in gratitude concedes Bond's wish to prevent the fight between the two from continuing, and delivers the decision to him, sending both women to Bond for the rest of the night. The next day, they say goodbye to Bond without the audience knowing of his decision.


  • Adaptational Modesty: In the novel, it's stated that the fighting gypsy girls ripped each clothes off until being completely naked. This would never have passed the censors in 1963, so they were given (scant) clothing that remains through the fight.
  • Cat Fight: They famously engage in one to settle their dispute over the hand of the Gypsy camp chief's son.
  • Fanservice Extra: They are minor characters, and their appearance (i.e. their Cat Fight) is simply for fanservice purposes.
  • Grievous Bottley Harm: During their fight with each other, Vida picks up a bottle when she has Zora pinned down and is ready to bludgeon her, only to be interrupted by the arrival of Krilencu and his men.
  • Hot Gypsy Woman: Two of them. They end up together in James Bond's bed.
  • A Threesome Is Hot: After their fight is cancelled due to Krilencu and his men assaulting the camp, they are sent to Bond to tend for his injuries in the assault. It's pretty much implied that Bond and them have a threesome.
  • The Un-Reveal: Their fight started due to vying for the affections of the same man, and after their fight is cancelled, the chief of the Gypsy camp decides to leave the decision to Bond. The next day, all we see is Bond waving goodbye at them without knowing of his decision.

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