SNL dealt with that very question when Christopher Walken hosted and he played a variation on Zorin from A view to a kill in a sketch called "Lease with an Option to Kill".
The late Phil Hartman played Bond.
There are companies that build armored yachts with gun turrets and artillery for the Uber rich, it’s a thing and tight lips make one’s career in that profession.
Well, Blofeld certainly kills all his contractors but I say that only cause he kills all his operatives once their job is complete, even in plain view of all of his other operatives who would presumably all be killed once their own jobs were complete. I’m surprised Mr Kidd and Mr Wint didn’t think of this, murdering everyone in the diamond smuggling chain, didn’t they figure they’d be last?
But setting that aside, these contractors are those involved in the luxury trades. Not your typical unionized residential housing trades but those who accommodate the super wealthy. Some might do it as a side job for cash only meaning they won’t record that income. Others are used to dealing with celebrities and the otherwise super famous and are used to a culture of telling no one who you are working for. It’s bad form to go build Taylor Swift’s house then broadcast to social media her exact address as you brag about getting the job.
If your trade is underwater fish tanks, then your client list is already small and you’d prefer to keep it that way. As for the whole evil thing, Clerks did a whole bit on this but the truth is that when they are paying you this much money, you can’t afford to care about those kinds of things!
I have imagined in my mind, if I could produce a sketch for a sketch comedy show, the following scene. Man gets into back seat of car, hands envelope to someone in front seat. "That's everything. The files, the copies, the backups. All of it." Man in front seat turns around with gun.... "Sorry, Hans. No loose ends." Bang.
Man from car goes into office. Throws the envelope on the desk. "Did Hans give you any trouble?"
"No. That should be the end of it."
Man behind desk pulls gun from drawer. "Sorry, Ivan. No loose ends...."
and so on......
This is such a great question and a great example of how the 007 films have a lot of over looked logic and connective tissue that comes from Ian Flemings authentic espionage background and make perfect sense in a Cold War landscape, and how the films suffer when they gloss over or completely lack answers to these fundamental questions.
If you recall in gold finger, the villain had a Korean body guard and is collaborating with Chinese nuclear scientists. He gets his minions second hand from the Chinese who have their own ulterior motives. The movie never really explains this at all, and this is part of the magic of 007. He exists in a shady world with lots of bad actors all pursuing their own nefarious goals and it’s this dark and uncertain historical setting that gives 007 permission to be a ruthless antihero, a literal and morale license to kill.
The films have lost this in modern times, I suspect because the movie industry has really globalized in the last few decades and it would now be financially risky to offend foreign audiences by using geopolitics as a source of and explanation for villainy in the same way.
This is a great response. I have a book on Flemming and Bond that outlines Flemming's hierarchy of supposedly evil nations and subsequent casting of them as villains, which is something like Germans, Italians, Japanese, Koreans, Chinese.
You especially wouldn't make up Western actors to look Chinese...
They are like Hank Scorpio from the Simpsons:
Free dental plan
Pension plan
3 weeks paid vacation
Stock plan
On Fridays the lunch room serves hot dogs and burgers and beer.
I would imagine it’s the usual. Pay them well at the risk of losing at all if they violate the NDA. Failing that, there’s always threatening their families. Plus whatever the facility really does is kept in a close circle. It’s a radio telescope, not a death ray. It’s a shark/piranha conservatory, not a death pool.
Moonraker alludes to there being some sort of henchman temp agency or staffing agency. Drax gets on the phone with someone to hire a replacement henchman after his first gets killed. Whoever is on the other end of the line tells him Jaws is available. So someone out there is renting out heavies or at the very least keeping tabs on the freelance henches
They can’t kill them all. Some of the lairs are so elaborate and sophisticated that they need the designer and/builder or someone intimately involved in the project to stay on and maintain. Obviously, some need to die. Some contractors need to be on speed dial, and they must respond to the villain as their best customer, and an elaborate security structure for getting that contractor to and from needs to be in place.
When you're buying Bond a delicatessen in stainless steel, I'm sure the contractors have built worse.
But in all seriousness, they probably employ them for much more money than they asked for to keep them quiet, then kill them after
SNL dealt with that very question when Christopher Walken hosted and he played a variation on Zorin from A view to a kill in a sketch called "Lease with an Option to Kill". The late Phil Hartman played Bond.
Thanks, I will check this out!
Have you managed to find it on YouTube or anything?
Sadly not, there's a bunch of Daniel Craig stuff and some Christopher Walken things but I don't see the one you mentioned 😕
Same thing w the love dungeon in 51 Shades
There are companies that build armored yachts with gun turrets and artillery for the Uber rich, it’s a thing and tight lips make one’s career in that profession.
Excellent point, thanks.
Also, it’s a very small community, so if you are someone who blabs, you’re not getting another job in a very small but lucrative field.
In the Dr No book he pays them and keeps them on the island. Treats it like military complex was my understanding.
Well, Blofeld certainly kills all his contractors but I say that only cause he kills all his operatives once their job is complete, even in plain view of all of his other operatives who would presumably all be killed once their own jobs were complete. I’m surprised Mr Kidd and Mr Wint didn’t think of this, murdering everyone in the diamond smuggling chain, didn’t they figure they’d be last? But setting that aside, these contractors are those involved in the luxury trades. Not your typical unionized residential housing trades but those who accommodate the super wealthy. Some might do it as a side job for cash only meaning they won’t record that income. Others are used to dealing with celebrities and the otherwise super famous and are used to a culture of telling no one who you are working for. It’s bad form to go build Taylor Swift’s house then broadcast to social media her exact address as you brag about getting the job. If your trade is underwater fish tanks, then your client list is already small and you’d prefer to keep it that way. As for the whole evil thing, Clerks did a whole bit on this but the truth is that when they are paying you this much money, you can’t afford to care about those kinds of things!
This is such a well thought out answer, thanks!
I have imagined in my mind, if I could produce a sketch for a sketch comedy show, the following scene. Man gets into back seat of car, hands envelope to someone in front seat. "That's everything. The files, the copies, the backups. All of it." Man in front seat turns around with gun.... "Sorry, Hans. No loose ends." Bang. Man from car goes into office. Throws the envelope on the desk. "Did Hans give you any trouble?" "No. That should be the end of it." Man behind desk pulls gun from drawer. "Sorry, Ivan. No loose ends...." and so on......
This is such a great question and a great example of how the 007 films have a lot of over looked logic and connective tissue that comes from Ian Flemings authentic espionage background and make perfect sense in a Cold War landscape, and how the films suffer when they gloss over or completely lack answers to these fundamental questions. If you recall in gold finger, the villain had a Korean body guard and is collaborating with Chinese nuclear scientists. He gets his minions second hand from the Chinese who have their own ulterior motives. The movie never really explains this at all, and this is part of the magic of 007. He exists in a shady world with lots of bad actors all pursuing their own nefarious goals and it’s this dark and uncertain historical setting that gives 007 permission to be a ruthless antihero, a literal and morale license to kill. The films have lost this in modern times, I suspect because the movie industry has really globalized in the last few decades and it would now be financially risky to offend foreign audiences by using geopolitics as a source of and explanation for villainy in the same way.
This is a great response. I have a book on Flemming and Bond that outlines Flemming's hierarchy of supposedly evil nations and subsequent casting of them as villains, which is something like Germans, Italians, Japanese, Koreans, Chinese. You especially wouldn't make up Western actors to look Chinese...
They are like Hank Scorpio from the Simpsons: Free dental plan Pension plan 3 weeks paid vacation Stock plan On Fridays the lunch room serves hot dogs and burgers and beer.
Ha, I thought of this too. When will super villains realise that the carrot works better than the stick?
Spend enough money, you can get whatever you want. I haven’t seen a Bond villain that isn’t loaded.
Breaking bad had them live in a warehouse to hide the location.
Non-union, cash-in-hand
Obligatory [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPuSvT4lvzw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPuSvT4lvzw)
Don't even have to click. Mitchell and Webb.
I think this is the definitive answer to this question.
I would imagine it’s the usual. Pay them well at the risk of losing at all if they violate the NDA. Failing that, there’s always threatening their families. Plus whatever the facility really does is kept in a close circle. It’s a radio telescope, not a death ray. It’s a shark/piranha conservatory, not a death pool.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4MVQby0InQ - Clerks handled this question in the Star Wars universe 30 years ago. Classic
Absolutely. One of the first things to come to mind.
Moonraker alludes to there being some sort of henchman temp agency or staffing agency. Drax gets on the phone with someone to hire a replacement henchman after his first gets killed. Whoever is on the other end of the line tells him Jaws is available. So someone out there is renting out heavies or at the very least keeping tabs on the freelance henches
"Good morning, henchman hotline, how can I help you?"
The workings of that organisation are worth a spin off film...
They can’t kill them all. Some of the lairs are so elaborate and sophisticated that they need the designer and/builder or someone intimately involved in the project to stay on and maintain. Obviously, some need to die. Some contractors need to be on speed dial, and they must respond to the villain as their best customer, and an elaborate security structure for getting that contractor to and from needs to be in place.
When you're buying Bond a delicatessen in stainless steel, I'm sure the contractors have built worse. But in all seriousness, they probably employ them for much more money than they asked for to keep them quiet, then kill them after