No James Bond film would be complete without a steely Bond Girl, taking down the suave secret agent with her honed fighting skills and razor-sharp wit.
Over the years, tens of actresses from across the globe have earned the coveted title of “Bond Girl”, with nearly 30 007 films to date.
These femme fatales are often more famous than the Bond actors themselves, stealing the show with cutthroat action shots and steamy bed scenes.
Stars like Halle Berry, Barbara Bach and Britt Ekland have cemented their status as the most beloved Bond Girls of all time, forever linked with the spy franchise.
But where are these glamorous screen sirens today?
Ursula Andress
Ursula Andress starred as screen siren Honey Ryder in the 1962 film Dr No (Image: PUBLICITY PICTURE)
Famed as the first-ever Bond Girl, Ursula Andress starred as Honey Ryder in the 1962 film Dr No, opposite Sean Connery.
The 84-year-old Swiss bombshell made cinema history in her opening scene, when she rose out of the Caribbean Sea in a white belted bikini, a diving knife secured at her hip.
Speaking to The Telegraph in 2001, Ursula credited her lengthy film career to the iconic white bikini.
She said: “This bikini made me into a success. As a result of starring in Dr No as the first Bond Girl, I was given the freedom to take my pick of future roles and to become financially independent.”
Ursula thanked the white Dr No bikini for cementing her status as a sex symbol (Image: Getty Images)
The swimsuit was later auctioned off for the whopping sum of £41,125, proving to be a true fixture of film history.
Ursula’s acting career thrived throughout the 60s and 70s, securing her status as a sex symbol with roles in films such as The Sensuous Nurse and Fun in Acapulco.
Today, she lives between Rome and Switzerland and has one son named Dimitri Hamlin, 40, born from a relationship with her former actor fiancé Harry Hamlin.
Barbara Bach
Barbara became an overnight sensation as Bond girl Anya Amasova (Image: Moviepix)
The Spy Who Loved Me was a box office hit back in 1977, with Barbara Bach playing the sultry Bond Girl Anya Amasova.
With Roger Moore playing the iconic MI6 agent, Bond teamed up with Major Anya Amasova after murdering her lover in Austria.
The 73-year-old star later hit out at the film franchise, branding Bond as “a chauvinist pig who uses girls to shield him against bullets”, according to People magazine.
Barbara tied the knot with Ringo Starr in the early 80s, with the two still together today (Image: WireImage)
Barbara later featured in a Playboy magazine spread celebrating her role as a Bond girl, titled “Bonded Barbara”.
In the years that followed, she took a step out of the spotlight and married The Beatles’ drummer Ringo Starr in a 1981 ceremony.
The happy couple is still married today and split their time between their homes in Cranleigh, Los Angeles, and Monte Carlo.
Halle Berry
Halle gave Ursula Andress a run for her money in the iconic 2002 flick (Image: 20th Century Fox)
Halle Berry made waves with her appearance in 2002’s Die Another Day, channelling original Bond Girl Ursula Andress as she climbed out of the ocean in her opening shot.
The 53-year-old bombshell became an instant sex symbol with her bright orange bikini, playing NSA agent Jinx Johnson opposite Pierce Brosnan’s Bond.
Earlier this year, Halle admitted Pierce “saved her life” during the filming of the 007 flick, reflecting on the incident during an appearance on Jimmy Fallon.
Halle is one of Hollywood’s biggest stars today, with countless box office hits to her name (Image: WireImage)
She said: “One time I was doing a scene with Pierce Brosnan in Die Another Day. I was supposed to be all sexy and trying to seduce him with a fig, and then I ended up choking on it.
“He had to get up and do the Heimlich [manoeuvre]. It was so not sexy, like so not sexy!”
Of every Bond Girl, Halle has arguably enjoyed the most successful career, going on to appear in X-Men, Catwoman and the John Wick film franchise.
Halle tied the knot with French actor Olivier Martinez in 2013, though the two announced their divorce three years later.
The US actress has two children – one daughter from a former relationship with French Canadian model Gabriel Aubry, and a son by Martinez.
Britt Ekland
Britt played Mary Goodnight in 1974’s The Man with the Golden Gun (Image: Allstar/Cinetext/UNITED ARTISTS)
Swedish beauty Britt Ekland brought some Scandinavian glamour to the role of Mary Goodnight in 1974’s The Man with the Golden Gun.
Starring opposite Roger Moore as Bond, Britt played a British agent enlisted to help the MI6 spy in taking down the assassin Francisco Scaramanga.
The 77-year-old was already a star before she landed the role, thanks to her high-profile relationship with comic Peter Sellers and her lead role in The Wicker Man.
In 1975, she started a two-year relationship with rock star Rod Stewart, later claiming the singer once wore her underwear onstage.
The Bond bombshell later enjoyed a romance with rock star Rod Stewart (Image: Getty Images)
The model and film star went on to marry Stray Cats drummer Slim Jim Phantom – who was 19 years her junior at the time – though they divorced in 1992.
Britt has three children by three different partners – a daughter, Victoria Sellers, and sons Nic Adler and Thomas Jefferson.
In 1980, she released an autobiography about her life, titled True Britt, in which she discussed the legacy of becoming a Bond Girl.
More recently, she has put her name to several theatre productions and television shows, including I’m A Celeb and Loose Women.
Earlier this year, she appeared on BBC’s Real Marigold Hotel, which saw her explore India with a group of low-key celebrities.
Gloria Hendry
Gloria played junior CIA agent Rosie Carver in Live and Let Die (Image: Mondadori via Getty Images)
Back in 1973, Gloria Hendry sent pulses racing as junior CIA agent Rosie Carver in Live and Let Die.
Starring Roger Moore, the film saw Bond enlist the help of Rosie in San Monique, a fictional island country in the Caribbean Sea, though she was murdered in later scenes.
The first black woman to play one of Bond’s love interests, Gloria discussed her role as a Bond Girl in her self-titled memoir, Gloria.
Speaking about landing her first audition for the Bond film at San Diego comic-con in 2018, she recalled: “I said, ‘I’m not tall, I’m not blonde, I’m not big-busted. Why do you want to see me?’
Gloria later released an autobiography of her life, reflecting on her success as a Bond girl (Image: FilmMagic)
“He [her agent] said, ‘Gloria, they want to see you.'”
She added: “Once a Bond lady, it’s always a Bond lady. I have tried to get rid of the stigma.”
Gloria went on to appear in a number of blaxploitation films throughout the 70s, including Hell Up in Harlem, Across 110th Street and Black Belt Jones.
In 1995, she married the jazz musician Phillip Wayne Wright.
Denise Richards
Denise played an American nuclear physicist named Christmas Jones (Image: Getty Images)
Denise Richards is better known as a Real Housewives star today, but back in 1999, she cemented her star status by joining the elite Bond Girl ranks.
The 49-year-old played an American nuclear physicist named Christmas Jones in The World Is Not Enough, starring opposite hunky Irishman Pierce Brosnan.
Denise’s character was slammed by critics for her unlikely wardrobe choices, but the actress later hit back, telling USA Today: “These Bond Girls are so outrageous and if I did really look like a scientist, the Bond fans would have been disappointed.”
The US actress went on to appear on shows such as Friends, and starred in films Valentine, Love Actually and Scary Movie 3.
Denise is one of the major stars on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills today (Image: Getty Images)
Continuing to model in the years that followed, Denise has developed her own skincare line as well as working as a brand ambassador for a number of beauty products.
Her marriage to actor Charlie Sheen made headlines in the early noughties, ending when Denise filed for divorce in 2005.
In May 2010, Sheen gave up custody of their daughters to Richards, before Denise went on to adopt a third daughter as a single parent.
Two years ago, she tied the knot with Aaron Phypers – who works in “energy healing” – and regularly speaks about their healthy sex life on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
