James Bond Banned from Having Dog Due to Fleming Family’s Creative Control

James Bond is banned from having a dog.

The suave spy, created by Ian Fleming who died in 1964, has his family’s creative control over all books written in the franchise. They have blocked attempts to give Bond a pet due to Fleming’s hatred of canines.

Charlie Higson, author of five Young Bond books, told a podcast he gave Bond a dog in his first book but was told “no” by Fleming’s estate because the creator hated dogs. He added that the dog didn’t make it into the book as there were limited roles for the canine companion.

Meanwhile, Callum Turner, Harris Dickinson, and Jacob Elordi have been tipped to take over Bond from Daniel Craig. However, Debbie McWilliams, who worked on the franchise for 40 years, doesn’t think any of them are right for the part. She told The Independent that she doesn’t want to see any of them as James Bond due to their public persona and lack of enigma required for the spy role.

Debbie also mentioned that it helps enormously to cast a relatively unknown Bond, citing Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan’s lesser-known status before Daniel Craig. Despite calls for a female Bond, she insisted the role should remain with a man as written by Fleming.