Those familiar with James Bond know the importance of gambling (and winning) in his role as MI6’s ruthless and charismatic field agent. Despite playing a variety of casino games throughout the course of the franchise, some games are more often associated with the character – namely Chemin de Fer, Craps, and Texas hold ’em. As such, Bond’s proclivity for cards stands out as one of the primary fields on which he does battle - fighting sometimes for women, sometimes for England, but almost always for money he never seems to need.
Knowing the prevalence of cards in the story of Bond creates a unique opportunity to reimagine his story through the lens of the 1980s. It can be said of the 70s and 80s that backgammon experienced a sort of renaissance in Western pop culture. While there were several influences on its resurgence, for many it came down to the game’s easy learning curve, the chance to gamble, and one’s ability to blame unlucky dice rather than their own poor decisions whenever they lost. The game took off and could be found everywhere, and the 1983 Bond film Octopussy is no exception.
As 007 traverses Europe and Asia in pursuit of jewel smugglers, he finds himself in the palace of Octopussy in Udaipur, India. In her company is Kamal Khan, Afghan prince and associate with whom she frequently conducts black market business. The level of deceit for which Khan is known runs deeper than originally expected, and Bond’s spy work uncovers a plot between Khan and a Soviet general to subvert the West while smuggling treasures and profiting along the way. Where the real story for us begins is when Bond stumbles upon Khan taking advantage of his competitors in a game of backgammon. Keen to Khan’s cheating methods and armed with the supernatural ability to win whenever he chooses to gamble, Bond challenges him to a game with one request - that they switch dice. In prior games Bond had observed Khan swiftly beating his opponents with loaded dice that rolled doubles on command. 007 makes quick work of Khan and beats him at his own game.
Several factors must be considered when assessing why the producers of this film decided to incorporate backgammon into the storyline, and some are more obvious than others. Given its popularity at the time andKhan’s Afghan heritage, it’s easy to see why it falls seamlessly into the film from a cultural perspective. What many people may be unfamiliar with is the insatiable desire of Roger Moore and Cubby Broccoli to play high-stakes backgammon on set while filming. As protagonist and producer, they spent countless hours together, gambling in the most scenic film locations imaginable and lending to us a series of photographs that are so effortlessly cool, we wouldn’t know how to properly thank them if we could. Join us as we indulge in not only the legacy and aesthetic of Bond, but also the game that was just too cool to be left out.
