So here’s who M says would pay $1 million to have Bond killed in The Man With The Golden Gun, where he also mentions that the “list is endless.” Telling a double-oh that the “list is endless” is a harsh rebuke, especially since Bond’s reputation inevitably reflects on M’s leadership. Yet the implication is clear that whatever Bond’s personal excesses, he remains indispensable precisely because of his effectiveness.

The categories themselves are revealing, but also invite closer scrutiny. Jealous husbands are self-explanatory, as a wry nod to Bond’s serial indiscretions, while the “outraged chefs” and “humiliated tailors” suggest something broader than literal grievances. Although Bond rarely behaves so blatantly poorly toward service staff on screen, the remark still implies his tendency to move through social settings with a sense of entitlement and arrogance. It raises the question of whether M’s examples are meant to be taken at face value or as dry exaggeration, though the scene’s lack of overt humor suggests it isn’t intended as a joke.