M (James Bond)

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Character
Name: M
Occupation: Head of MI6
Relationships:
Fandom: James Bond
Other:
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M is a James Bond character that has been played over time by different actors, thus also having different backgrounds. M is the leader of the agency which Bond is a part of, MI6. In the initial films, M was an older man, with white hair and a military background, over the decades, his figure was replaced by younger actors and even a gender change, with M being played by an actress.

Canon

Bernard Lee's M

Played by actor Bernard Lee and known as Sir Miles Messervy, he is directly based on the character from the novels. Messervy first appears in Dr. No (1962) and last appears in Moonraker (1979). He was also planned to appear in For Your Eyes Only (1981), however the actor died during production.

Judi Dench's M

First introduced in GoldenEye (1995), Judi Dench's M was named Olivia Mansfield, as seen in the easter egg from Skyfall (2012). Her last appearance was in Spectre (2015) where she only appears in a video message which she recorded prior to her death. Mansfield has studied law at Oxford and is married with children, though her husband dies at some point between Quantum of Solace and Skyfall. She is shown to be professional, not afraid to speak her mind and having no problems with risking the lives of her agents when she deems it necessary. During the events of Skyfall, she is fatally wounded in a shoot-out and dies as a result.

Ralph Fiennes' M

Named Gareth Mallory, Ralph Fiennes' M appears for the first time in Skyfall (2012) being the current interpreter of the character. Initially he was the chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee, and takes the position of M after his predecessor (played by Dench) is killed.

Fandom

From a parental figure to a counselor and possible lover, M is a figure that has intrigued fans since the novels, mainly because throughout the films he is responsible for several versions of Bond.

Pairings

The most popular pairing involving M is James Bond/M, with most fans of the pairing shipping Daniel Craig's James Bond with Judi Dench's M (Olivia Mansfield), and some also shipping Daniel Craig's James Bond with Ralph Fiennes' M (Gareth Mallory).

Fanworks

Fanart

Meta, Further Read & Essays

References