# The Man with the Golden Gun (film)
*The Man with the Golden Gun* is a 1974 British spy film, the ninth entry in the Eon Productions James Bond series and the second to star [Roger Moore](https://www.edgepedia.org/roger-moore) as 007, pitting him against the assassin [Francisco Scaramanga](https://www.edgepedia.org/francisco-scaramanga), played by [Christopher Lee](https://www.edgepedia.org/christopher-lee).[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616) Directed by Guy Hamilton from a screenplay by Richard Maibaum and Tom Mankiewicz, it was released in December 1974, roughly 18 months after Moore's debut in *Live and Let Die*.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616) • [2](https://www.007magazine.co.uk/news_tmwtgg50.htm)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | New York opening 18 December 1974; world debut at the Odeon Leicester Square, London, 19 December 1974; running time 123–125 minutes, rated PG[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616) • [3](https://www.mi6-hq.com/news/index.php?itemid=11623) |
| Lead cast | Roger Moore (Bond), Christopher Lee (Scaramanga), Britt Ekland (Mary Goodnight), Maud Adams (Andrea), Hervé Villechaize (Nick Nack)[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616) |
| Filming | 15 April to late August 1974; locations in Thailand, Hong Kong, and Macau, with interiors at Pinewood Studios[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616) |
| Budget and gross | Budget $7 million; worldwide box office $97.6 million ($21 million domestic, $76.6 million international)[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Man-with-the-Golden-Gun-The) |
| Critical scores | Metascore 43 from 11 critic reviews, user score 6.0; Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer 40%[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-man-with-the-golden-gun/) • [6](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/guide/james-bond-movies/) |
| Music | Score by John Barry; title song sung by Lulu, written by Don Black and composed by Barry[7](https://www.jamesbond.de/die-filme/filme-mit-roger-moore/der-mann-mit-dem-goldenen-colt/) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
Bond investigates a professional assassin who has been linked to the death of a scientist and finds that he is the next target.[8](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-man-with-the-golden-gun-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0ynzgwnje) The assassin, Francisco Scaramanga, is described as the world's most expensive hired killer, identifiable by his golden gun and, in the film's most-quoted detail, three nipples.[9](https://time.com/3917785/christopher-lee-5-greatest-roles/) The plot centers on advanced solar cell technology, the Solex agitator, being sold to the highest bidder, with Scaramanga taking over a Chinese businessman's enterprises to control it.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-man-with-the-golden-gun/) • [10](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/bonding-with-bond-day-10-the-man-with-the-golden-gun/) The film's backstory gives Scaramanga a father who was "possibly Cuban," KGB training, and an independent career from the late 1950s.[11](https://helda.helsinki.fi/server/api/core/bitstreams/e1e5c673-9155-4617-b67c-54ed2ff50790/content)
The film sends Bond to Southeast Asia, the series' first return to the region since *You Only Live Twice* (1967), with action in Bangkok's klongs, a Thai boxing stadium, and Scaramanga's island retreat.[12](https://www.cineworld.co.uk/static/en/uk/blog/bond-movies-revisited-the-man-with-the-golden-gun) Scaramanga's funhouse, an obstacle course containing a [James Bond](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-bond) statue for target practice, stages the final duel.[13](https://cinej.pitt.edu/ojs/cinej/article/view/160/425)
## Production
[United Artists](https://www.edgepedia.org/united-artists) had quickly green-lit the next 007 adventure for filming in April 1974, after *[Live and Let Die](https://www.edgepedia.org/live-and-let-die-film)* out-grossed *Diamonds Are Forever* by a significant margin.[2](https://www.007magazine.co.uk/news_tmwtgg50.htm) According to production charts published on 24 May 1974, filming began on 15 April 1974; after location work in Thailand, Hong Kong, and Macau, the cast and crew arrived in London on 27 June 1974 to shoot interiors at [Pinewood Studios](https://www.edgepedia.org/pinewood-studios). A second unit stayed in Thailand, but political turmoil after the Thai government collapsed in spring 1974 drove it to shoot elsewhere.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616) The budget was less than $7 million, with American Motors, Dunlop, Westinghouse, Sony, Nikon, and Colibri supplying products for promotional consideration; Colibri's lighters, fountain pens, and cuff links were used to assemble Scaramanga's golden gun.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616)
**Stunts and crew changes.** The film's signature stunt is the 360-degree corkscrew jump of Bond's red [AMC Hornet](https://www.edgepedia.org/amc-hornet) across a wrecked bridge at Klong Rangsit, filmed on 1 June 1974 and performed by Loren "Bumps" Willert; the jump appeared on the theatrical poster painted by Robert McGinnis, though the car illustrated resembles Scaramanga's AMC Matador.[14](https://www.007magazine.co.uk/news_tmwtgg50-1.htm) Regular production designer Ken Adam was working on *Barry Lyndon*, so Peter Murton was promoted to production designer; cinematographer Ted Moore, on his seventh and final Bond film, was joined by Oswald Morris in the credits.[2](https://www.007magazine.co.uk/news_tmwtgg50.htm) • [1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616) John Barry composed the score over three weeks, with recording beginning 14 October 1974; Lulu's title song had been recorded the previous month.[15](https://007magazine.co.uk/news_tmwtgg50-2.htm)
## Relationship to the novel
The film bears only the faintest resemblance to [Ian Fleming](https://www.edgepedia.org/ian-fleming)'s 1965 novel of the same title, his last Bond book, published posthumously and unfinished.[13](https://cinej.pitt.edu/ojs/cinej/article/view/160/425) • [16](https://www.branaghcompendium.com/Man_w_Golden_Gun.pdf) Fleming set the story in Jamaica, where Scaramanga is a churlish American crimelord hosting Mafiosi and Communist agents; the screenwriters moved the action to the [Far East](https://www.edgepedia.org/far-east) and transformed Scaramanga into a stealthy, erudite British assassin.[12](https://www.cineworld.co.uk/static/en/uk/blog/bond-movies-revisited-the-man-with-the-golden-gun) • [13](https://cinej.pitt.edu/ojs/cinej/article/view/160/425) Only the character of Scaramanga remains intact from the book.[17](https://www.thejamesbonddossier.com/features/octopussy-versus-the-man-with-the-golden-gun.htm) Lee, who was Fleming's step-cousin and had been considered for the title role in *Dr. No*, said the film character "is a great improvement on the character in the book."[12](https://www.cineworld.co.uk/static/en/uk/blog/bond-movies-revisited-the-man-with-the-golden-gun) • [9](https://time.com/3917785/christopher-lee-5-greatest-roles/)
The project had a long gestation. After *You Only Live Twice* (1967), [Eon Productions](https://www.edgepedia.org/eon-productions) gave some thought to making *The Man with the Golden Gun* its sixth Bond film, but Roger Moore's schedule was filled with another project, so the role went to [George Lazenby](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-lazenby) for 1969's *On Her Majesty's Secret Service*.[18](https://www.lifebetweenframes.com/2012/05/man-with-golden-gun.html?showComment=1660367051689)
## Reception
The film received mixed reviews and is frequently ranked by fans toward the bottom of the series.[17](https://www.thejamesbonddossier.com/features/octopussy-versus-the-man-with-the-golden-gun.htm) Its Metascore is 43, based on 11 critic reviews, with a user score of 6.0.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-man-with-the-golden-gun/) Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 40% Tomatometer, ranking it 25th of the Bond films, with a critics consensus citing "double entendre-laden dialogue, a noteworthy lack of gadgets, and a villain that overshadows 007."[6](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/guide/james-bond-movies/) TIME's review called the film "overtricky, uninspired," saying the exercises showed "the strain of stretching fantasy well past wit."[19](https://time.com/4093419/reviews-james-bond-movies/)
**Box office.** Worldwide gross was $97.6 million, $21 million of it domestic, against a $7 million production budget, 13.9 times the budget.[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Man-with-the-Golden-Gun-The) Reviewers have been more generous to Lee than to the film around him: Eye for Film calls his Scaramanga a performance that "should not be missed" in a film that is otherwise "deeply uneven," and GamesRadar writes that Lee's charisma "hides much of the film's shortcomings."[20](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/the-man-with-the-golden-gun-1974-film-review-by-jennie-kermode) • [21](https://www.gamesradar.com/best-james-bond-movies/)
## Legacy
The filming location left a durable mark on tourism. Scaramanga's island headquarters was set at Koh Tapu in Phang Nga Bay, Phuket, Thailand, then a remote area reachable only through pirate-inhabited waters; after the film's release the island became a major tourist attraction known as James Bond Island.[22](https://time.com/4079504/james-bond-facts-trivia/) The film's closing title card promised that "James Bond will return in The Spy Who Loved Me," the 1977 entry in the series.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616)
## References
1. [The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), AFI Catalog of Feature Films](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67616)
2. [The Man With The Golden Gun 50th Anniversary 1974–2024, James Bond 007 Magazine](https://www.007magazine.co.uk/news_tmwtgg50.htm)
3. [The Man With The Golden Gun celebrates its 40th anniversary, MI6-HQ](https://www.mi6-hq.com/news/index.php?itemid=11623)
4. [The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) Box Office, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Man-with-the-Golden-Gun-The)
5. [The Man with the Golden Gun Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-man-with-the-golden-gun/)
6. [All 27 James Bond Movies Ranked by Tomatometer, Rotten Tomatoes](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/guide/james-bond-movies/)
7. [Der Mann mit dem goldenen Colt, JamesBond.de](https://www.jamesbond.de/die-filme/filme-mit-roger-moore/der-mann-mit-dem-goldenen-colt/)
8. [The Man With The Golden Gun, BBFC](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-man-with-the-golden-gun-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0ynzgwnje)
9. [Watch 5 of Christopher Lee's Greatest Roles, TIME](https://time.com/3917785/christopher-lee-5-greatest-roles/)
10. [Bonding with Bond, Day 10: The Man with the Golden Gun, Rotten Tomatoes](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/bonding-with-bond-day-10-the-man-with-the-golden-gun/)
11. [Cuba in Bond films, University of Helsinki repository](https://helda.helsinki.fi/server/api/core/bitstreams/e1e5c673-9155-4617-b67c-54ed2ff50790/content)
12. [Bond Movies Revisited: The Man with the Golden Gun, Cineworld](https://www.cineworld.co.uk/static/en/uk/blog/bond-movies-revisited-the-man-with-the-golden-gun)
13. [The Cultural Life of James Bond, CINEJ Cinema Journal](https://cinej.pitt.edu/ojs/cinej/article/view/160/425)
14. [The Man With The Golden Gun 50th Anniversary (production), James Bond 007 Magazine](https://www.007magazine.co.uk/news_tmwtgg50-1.htm)
15. [The Man With The Golden Gun 50th Anniversary (music), James Bond 007 Magazine](https://007magazine.co.uk/news_tmwtgg50-2.htm)
16. [The Man with the Golden Gun (novel discussion), Branagh Compendium](https://www.branaghcompendium.com/Man_w_Golden_Gun.pdf)
17. [Octopussy versus The Man With The Golden Gun, The James Bond Dossier](https://www.thejamesbonddossier.com/features/octopussy-versus-the-man-with-the-golden-gun.htm)
18. [50 Years of 007 – The Man with the Golden Gun, Life Between Frames](https://www.lifebetweenframes.com/2012/05/man-with-golden-gun.html?showComment=1660367051689)
19. [Read Every Single TIME Review of the James Bond Movies, TIME](https://time.com/4093419/reviews-james-bond-movies/)
20. [The Man With The Golden Gun (1974) Movie Review, Eye for Film](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/the-man-with-the-golden-gun-1974-film-review-by-jennie-kermode)
21. [Best James Bond movies, ranked, GamesRadar](https://www.gamesradar.com/best-james-bond-movies/)
22. [50 Things You Didn't Know About James Bond, TIME](https://time.com/4079504/james-bond-facts-trivia/)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Action, thriller, and crime series film entries › Entries released 1960s and 1970s*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license