The backstory of the Bond movie marathon reveals a fascinating bit of TV history. According to The Washington Post, the network TBS started running the “007 Days of Christmas” in 1991 as a way to fill the space that followed sweeps week in November. As the number of movies grew, so too did the movie marathon. In the mid-2000s, the movie marathon moved to Spike TV, writes The Chicago Tribune.
Now, Bond fans have 25 films they can stream to create their own holiday marathon — and many of them are on Prime Video. While Connery and Moore had the highest number of films where they played the British spy, there are several Bond films that have slipped under the radar and are absolutely worth a watch. Here are seven James Bond movies you can now stream now on Prime Video and other streaming services.
Dr. No
If you’re only familiar with the later Bond films, it’s worth going back to the beginning of the franchise and watching Dr. No. This movie was the first of Fleming’s books to be made for the big screen. It’s fascinating to see how many film elements it introduces, from the swinging theme song to the opening shot down the barrel of a gun, that have now become quintessentially Bond.
Dr. No follows Bond as he goes to Jamaica to investigate the murder of an MI6 agent. His investigation brings him to a secret island, where he must face off against Dr. No, a scientist intent on heating up the Cold War by interfering with the U.S. Space Program.
Watch on Prime Video with MGM Plus
Tomorrow Never Dies
A Brosnan-Bond film promises fun gadgets, wild chase scenes, and kickass women. And Tomorrow Never Dies hits the mark on all three counts. Not only can Michelle Yeoh, who plays Chinese agent Wei Lin, keep up with Bond in every fight scene, but she can also go toe-to-toe with him with witty, flirty banter.
Tomorrow Never Dies follows Bond as he fights against news magnate Elliot Carver (Jonathan Pryce), who causes chaos to create headlines for his news empire, Tomorrow. Bond must work with Wei Lin (Michelle Yeoh) to take down the Tomorrow empire. For a movie made in 1997, it got a lot of things right about how we consume the news and how those in power control the narrative.
Watch on Prime Video
Casino Royale
Casino Royale, released in 2006, was Daniel Craig’s debut as Bond. Since this movie, and book, are the first in the Bond series, we are introduced to a younger, more inexperienced agent. He’s just become a 00-agent and must face off against villain Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen), while also grappling with his attraction for British Treasury agent Vesper Lynd. But when he discovers Vesper has betrayed him, he must make an impossible decision.
This is the film to watch for people who endlessly debate which is better, the book or the movie. (You are my people.) Casino Royale lays the foundation for so much of what makes Bond Bond, from his Aston Martin to his vodka martini to his tuxedo.
Watch on Prime Video
The Living Daylights
Timothy Dalton, who followed Roger Moore in the Bond franchise, played the British agent very differently than his predecessor. Instead of leaning into the humor that Moore was known for, Dalton plays Bond as wearier and more austere. Perhaps as a result, he’s much more interesting to watch in The Living Daylights.
The Living Daylights starts with Bond defying orders; when faced with killing a young cellist who also acts as an assassin (Maryam d’Abo), he refuses. When he realizes the assassin has been set up in the interest of protecting her boyfriend, Bond sticks close by her to figure out what’s really going on.
Watch on Prime Video
Die Another Day
Do you want to see wildly expensive cars (one of which is a convertible) racing across an icy lake and shooting missiles at one another? Or see a fencing duel that quickly escalates into Bond (Brosnan) fighting a rich playboy-villain with a sword? Then settle in. Die Another Day is so deeply extra, from its long list of locations (including North Korea, Hong Kong, Cuba, and Iceland), to the gadgets (including a car that can disappear) to a villain (Toby Stephens) who undergoes gene therapy to change his race.
Watch on Max
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
Mike Reyes at CinemaBlend makes a compelling case for why the oft-dismissed On Her Majesty’s Secret Service should also be a must-watch for any Bond marathon: it has strong Christmas vibes, with one pivotal scene taking place at a holiday party. But perhaps more importantly, it shows an emotional arc for Bond, which “saw the legendary womanizer settling down, and in turn exposing a more tender side of himself in the face of loss,” writes Reyes. For all the cool toys and fight sequences, Bond is at his most compelling as a character when he’s made to have actual feelings.
The movie stars George Lazenby — his only foray into playing Bond, interrupting the slew of movies that Sean Connery would make — as he hunts down Ernst Blofeld, the head of the secret organization SPECTRE. This installment in the Bond series also has Bond getting married, only for his wife to be cruelly murdered shortly after the wedding.
Watch on Max
No Time to Die
In your Bond movie marathon, I suggest watching this last; you’ll want to watch the other movies on this list first to appreciate the number of storylines it pulls together, from SPECTRE to Vesper Lynd. It feels like a love letter to the Bond franchise, while also imagining what the future of the franchise could look like. This movie also takes a big swing by — spoiler alert — killing off 007.
No Time to Die has Craig’s Bond retire after suffering a major betrayal and a major heartbreak. However, when the CIA asks for his help in capturing a rogue scientist, he returns to the field – and must work alongside Madeleine, the woman who broke his heart and who is guarding a secret of her own.
Watch on Prime Video
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