Skyfall is the twenty-third James Bond movie produced by Eon Productions. This 2012 spy film stars Daniel Craig as Agent James Bond and features Javier Bardem as the villain, Raoul Silva. Directed by Sam Mendes and written by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, and John Logan, Skyfall follows Bond as he investigates a series of data leaks and attacks on MI6 led by Silva. The film also marks the return of two beloved Bond characters, Miss Moneypenny (played by Naomie Harris) and Q (played by Ben Whishaw). Supporting cast members include Ralph Fiennes, Bérénice Marlohe, and Albert Finney.

Mendes was brought on as director after the release of Quantum of Solace in 2008. The development of the film was temporarily suspended in 2010 due to MGM’s bankruptcy, but resumed in December 2010 with the hiring of Purvis, Wade, and Logan. Production on Skyfall took place from November 2011 to March 2012, with filming locations including London, Shanghai, Istanbul, and Scotland.

Skyfall premiered at the Royal Albert Hall on October 23, 2012, and was released in the UK three days later and in the US on November 9, 2012, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the first James Bond film, Dr. No. The film received widespread critical acclaim for Mendes’ direction, cast performances, action sequences, cinematography, and musical score. Skyfall was nominated for five Academy Awards and won two, grossing $1 billion worldwide. It became the 14th film to reach this milestone, the highest-grossing James Bond film, the second-highest grossing film of 2012, and the highest-grossing film released by Sony or MGM at the time. The next film in the James Bond series, Spectre, was released in 2015.

Plot: In Istanbul, Bond and Eve Moneypenny are pursuing mercenary Patrice, who has stolen a hard drive containing information about undercover agents. During the pursuit, Moneypenny shoots Bond, accidentally allowing Patrice to escape with the hard drive.

Three months later, M is facing pressure to retire due to a public inquiry into the stolen hard drive. Just as she is about to retire, MI6’s servers are hacked, and the building explodes. Bond, who had faked his death, returns to service to help M. He meets the new quartermaster, Q, and is tasked with identifying Patrice’s employer, recovering the hard drive, and killing Patrice.

Bond travels to Shanghai and eventually ends up on an abandoned island off the coast of Macau, where he meets Raoul Silva, a former MI6 agent turned cyberterrorist who orchestrated the attack on MI6. Bond and MI6 capture Silva, but he escapes and sets his sights on killing M.

Bond takes M to his childhood home in Scotland, where they set up booby traps and prepare for Silva’s arrival. Silva is ultimately killed by Bond, but not before M succumbs to her wounds. Following M’s funeral, Moneypenny becomes the new secretary for the newly appointed M, and Bond is ready to get back to work.