Amazon in U-turn over gunless James Bond artwork amid fan backlash

Amazon Prime Video appears to have quietly restored James Bond artwork to its original form, guns and all, following fan outrage.

The streamer, which earlier this year controversially assumed complete control of the iconic spy franchise, recently faced backlash from fans who noticed that special Prime Video artwork had edited out Bond’s guns.

In several of the posters, including Sean Connery’s Dr. No (1962) and Pierce Brosnan’s Goldeneye (1995), their weapons were entirely airbrushed out. The former originally showed Connery’s 007 with his arms crossed and his finger on the trigger of a small gun. However, in the reworked version, he’s simply crossing his arms.

Other posters, like Daniel Craig’s Spectre (2015), simply cropped out his hand holding a firearm.

Numerous Bond fans took notice of the censored posters Friday, with one X user arguing that “Bond without his gun is like Batman without his cape — you’ve stripped away the very symbol of who he is.”

“What absolute wet wipes!” a second criticized, while a third questioned: “Why? Honestly, it’s so pathetic. May as well censor out the words Gun, Die, Octopussy and Kill.”

“Amazon removing images of guns from James Bond cover art is the most American approach to gun control imaginable,” a fourth added sarcastically. “Well done.”

“It’s maddening,” another agreed. “The logo’s gun will be altered next.” The franchise’s logo famously depicts the “7” in Bond’s nickname, 007, as a gun.

By Monday, the posters had returned to their original form.

“What if the James Bond — Amazon — gun thing was a cheap deliberate ploy by Amazon to get Bond chatter going online, just as films are back on Prime for free?!” someone surmised. “Thus having them trending on the home page (which they are). They’ve since changed all artwork back.”

The Independent has contacted Amazon Studios for comment.

In February, it was announced that Amazon MGM had taken full creative control of the Bond franchise after striking a deal with long-time producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli.

The duo remain co-owners of the beloved franchise, but the business decision leaves creative control of future James Bond productions in the hands of American-owned Amazon, prompting concern from fans over potential changes to the franchise.

Currently, Oscar-nominated Dune director Denis Villeneuve has been tapped to helm the 26th Bond film for Amazon MGM. While the movie is not expected to be released until 2028, Villeneuve is reportedly on the hunt for an unknown actor to take over as James Bond.