Thunderball (film) Thunderball (film) Thunderball is a 1965 British spy film and the fourth in the "James Bond" series produced by Eon Productions, starring Sean Connery as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Ian Fleming, which in turn was based on an original screenplay by Jack Whittingham. It was directed by Terence Young, with its screenplay by Richard Maibaum and John Hopkins. The movie would have been the first of the Bond series if not for legal disputes over copyright issues. The film follows Bond's mission to find two NATO
James Bond released the first cinema adaptation of an Ian Fleming novel, "Dr. No", featuring Sean Connery as 007. Connery starred in a further four films before leaving the role after "You Only Live Twice", which was taken up by George Lazenby for "On Her Majesty's Secret Service". Lazenby left the role after just one appearance and Connery was brought back for his last Eon-produced film "Diamonds Are Forever". In 1973 Roger Moore was appointed to the role of 007 for "Live and Let Die" and played Bond a further six times over twelve years before being replaced by Timothy Dalton for