Whether he’s played by kindly grandfather-figure Desmond Llewelyn, or by the adorable Ben Whishaw in his glasses and knitwear, Q is one of the most beloved stalwarts of the James Bond franchise. Q introducing Bond to all of the elaborate gadgets that he’ll just happen to need for his secret mission is one of the most fun tropes in the movies, and these are scenes that fans always look forward to. One thing we’ve never considered though – is that Q might be the villain of the James Bond movies.
This is a theory posited by Reddit user StunningStretch6910, and quite a lot of what they say makes a kind of sense. They say that Q is using Bond as a test dummy for his prototype gadgets. “How is it that every time James Bond gets captured, he’s put into a very specific situation where he can only escape using the very specific gadgets given to him by Q at the start of his assignment?”
“My theory is that James Bond is nothing more than a test dummy, manipulated by Q through MI6 to field-test his gadgets.” OK, we’re with you so far. “And that Q is in reality an (evil?) international arms dealer and the true head of Spectre.” Wait, what was that last part?
Fear not, they go on to explain their reasons behind this shocking theory; “Reasons I believe this are: A: There is no way Q could naturally foresee James Bond needing something so stupidity specific like an inflatable bubble (The World is Not Enough) to be useful, let alone life-saving.”
“B: We already know Q has no issues using live test subjects, as in almost all of the scenes in Q Branch we see scientists get blown up or almost decapitated. His disregard to human life resembles that of Blofeld and all of the other big name villains. Who’s to say Blofeld isn’t just Q’s puppet?”
“C: In The Spy Who Loved Me, Soviet Agent XXX mentions that she has seen the blueprints to the underwater car, did she break into a highly secure MI6 lab?? Maybe, but I think a much simpler explanation is money.”
So there you have it, compelling (?) evidence that Q is in fact the evil mastermind and main movie villain in the Bond franchise. At the moment, who will next play Bond is the main question on everyone’s lips, with some strong contenders including Aaron Taylor-Johnson and James Norton.
While we wait to hear who it will be, check out our guides to the best spy movies, the best action movies, and the best thriller movies. Be sure that you know how to watch the James Bond movies in order too.