James Bond: Why Jaws Didn’t Return In For Your Eyes Only

Jaws (Richard Kiel) is one of the most iconic James Bond villains who appeared in two of Roger Moore’s films in the late 1970s, but the hulking henchman didn’t star in 1981’s For Your Eyes Only for a few reasons. Jaws was the unforgettable heavy in 1977’s The Spy Who Loved Me, which is arguably Roger Moore’s finest Bond film. The steel-mouthed monster proved so popular that he returned in 1979’s Moonraker, which was the most financially successful Bond film of Roger Moore’s era (although it’s also one of the least liked by critics and 007 fans).

The character of Jaws was based upon a thug with metal-capped teeth named Sol “Horror” Horowitz in Ian Fleming’s novel The Spy Who Loved Me. Although the theatrical film bears no resemblance to Fleming’s story, the Bond producers adapted the henchman with the steel grin of death and renamed him “Jaws” (the nod to Steven Spielberg’s 1975 blockbuster was no coincidence and Jaws even fought a man-eating shark in the film). In The Spy Who Loved Me film, Jaws was one of the henchmen of the villainous Karl Stromberg (Curd Jurgens) and he had an uncanny knack for surviving calamities, like when Bond kicked him out of a moving train. Jaws was so well-received by fans that he was brought back for Moonraker, although audiences were displeased that the silent killer was used for comic relief, robbing him of his menace. Jaws even falls in love at the end of the film and turns on the villain, Hugo Drax (Michael Lonsdale).

Jaws didn’t make a third appearance in For Your Eyes Only because, by that point, the James Bond producers opted to move in a different direction and make a more grounded and serious 007 film. For Your Eyes Only was actually the originally planned follow-up to The Spy Who Loved Me but the success of Star Wars in 1977 changed Hollywood. The 007 producers reacted to the new landscape and opted to make Moonraker, which had outer space elements like space shuttles and a space station. While Moonraker was an enormous financial success, it was the zenith of how over-the-top and spectacle-driven James Bond movies could become. Scaling back and returning to 007’s spy-driven roots was the only option to redirect the franchise, but that also left Jaws out in the cold.

Jaws’ undeniable popularity, especially with younger audiences, ended up kneecapping the monster as a serious Bond villain. Before production began on Moonraker, director Lewis Gilbert’s grandson even asked why Jaws had to be a bad guy, which prompted the shift of the villain losing his edge and becoming sympathetic in the film. Further, the way Jaws survived near-death experiences like falling from an airplane was played for comedy. Ultimately, after the way Jaws was portrayed in Moonraker and how much kids liked him, Bond’s producers and For Your Eyes Only’s director John Glen felt that there was no credible way to make the brute a genuine menace again. Jaws’ run in the James Bond movies was over, but his impact and legacy still endure.

While Oddjob (Harold Sakata) in 1964’s Goldfinger set the standard for memorable Bond henchmen, Jaws was an even bigger hit with audiences. Jaws also holds the distinction of being the only Bond villain besides the various incarnations of Ernst Stavro Blofeld to appear in two back-t0-back Bond movies. Further, the character of Mr. Hinx (Dave Bautista) in 2015’s Spectre was essentially a modernized revamp of Jaws; Hinx was also a massive brute who was a silent but brutal killer and he fought Daniel Craig’s 007 and Dr. Madeleine Swann (Lea Seydoux) on a train just as Jaws did Roger Moore’s Bond and Major Anya Amasova (Barbara Bach) in The Spy Who Loved Me.

Jaws’ time in James Bond movies ended in 1979, but the steel-mouthed menace found new life in other media: Jaws is a character in several video games like GoldenEye 007,007: Everything or Nothing, 007: Nightfire, and 007 Legends. Richard Kiel also lampooned Jaws in a cameo in 1999’s Inspector Gadget movie and he also made a memorable appearance in Adam Sandler’s Happy Gilmore before the actor died in 2014.

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