James Bond is the quintessential English gentleman: effortlessly smart, timelessly stylish, and perfectly tailored. In Spectre, the latest Bond blockbuster, the British spy played by Daniel Craig looks unforgettable, whether wearing a bespoke Day of the Dead costume in Mexico City or an elegant white tuxedo in Morocco.
Much of that is thanks to Spectre costume designer Jany Temime, who collaborated with film director Sam Mendes and fashion designer Tom Ford. Temime joined the Bond family with 2012’s Skyfall, and has also worked on Gravity, Hercules and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Here, she speaks to Rob Sharp about creating 007’s signature cool.
Tom Ford ‘Snowdon’ sunglasses worn by Daniel Craig as James Bond. Estimate: £4,000-6,000. This lot is offered in James Bond Spectre: Online, 16-23 February
How did your collaboration with fashion designer Tom Ford work, and did it change between Skyfall and Spectre?
Jany Temime: When I first started on Skyfall I met Tom Ford, and met with his collaborators regarding the style, the fabrics, the shapes, the colours — even the lapels and buttons. I designed the suits and these were then manufactured by Tom Ford, and he organised for tailors to come over from Italy to do the fittings. I also spoke with Sam and Daniel because we wanted a younger and more dynamic look for Bond. Tom Ford is a filmmaker himself so he understood my job.
One example of how we changed between the two films is I wanted a very special shirt collar for Skyfall, with a tab under it. I dropped this for Spectre, using a slightly bigger collar instead, just to update it.
Prototype one of eight Omega Seamaster 300 wristwatches, worn by Daniel Craig as James Bond. Estimate: £15,000-20,000. This lot is offered in James Bond Spectre: The Auction on 18 February at Christie’s in London
How did you adapt the costumes to the film’s stunts?
It was necessary for us to have a suit to follow the way Daniel runs. He’s a very physical actor and I wanted to keep the material very near the body and lightweight so you could feel the muscles, the dynamism.
We need many versions for every style of costume, so in other words a suit for Daniel and for each of his stuntmen, each of whom was a different size. Every suit was adapted for each stunt. We had longer sleeves when he had to be on a motorbike, and we made the legs stronger when he had to jump.
A two-piece dinner suit by Tom Ford, worn by Daniel Craig as James Bond. A single breasted cream silk mix dinner jacket labelled Made in Switzerland, with further label to interior pocket embroidered Tom Ford, Daniel Craig, Bond 24. Estimate: £20,000-30,000. This lot is offered in James Bond Spectre: The Auction on 18 February at Christie’s in London
This sale includes Bond’s white tuxedo, a major part of one of Bond’s most celebrated looks in Spectre. How did this look come about?
The Spectre white jacket was in silk because I wanted something very sensual. Bond is in Tangier, Morocco, so I went for a 1930s feel. There have been Bonds in white tuxedos before but this shape is new. We used Crockett & Jones shoes, which have the shape I want. The leather is perfect, and they fit Daniel perfectly.
James Bond’s initialled ‘JB’ Tom Ford cufflinks worn by Daniel Craig. Each set with oval pale grey mother-of-pearl panels engraved with monogram ‘JB’ for James Bond, to single-link connections, signed Tom Ford, 15mm wide, in maker’s case and card box. Estimate: £2,000–3,000. This lot is offered in James Bond Spectre: Online, 16-23 February
How did you adapt Bond’s cufflinks from Skyfall to Spectre?
In Skyfall we used his family crest because the film was about the family and his ancestors, whereas Spectre is about Bond himself. I had the 1930s in mind and I wanted something new so I found a pair of cufflinks in enamel, and then I thought that would be nice to put the JB initials on them. Tom Ford made them for us. We also chose sunglasses with a classical design from the Tom Ford collection.
James Bond’s Day of the Dead Costume worn by Daniel Craig. Black frock coat with white hand painted bones, size IT38; skull mask with elastic fastening; black leather gloves, size M; black top hat, 100% wool with grosgrain ribbon hat band ‘Jaxton Victorian’, size 7 5/8” (61 cm.); skull cane. Estimate: £12,000-18,000. This lot is offered in James Bond Spectre: The Auction on 18 February at Christie’s in London
What were the challenges in getting Bond’s Day of the Dead costume to work?
He had to look like James Bond in a crowd. We fitted different coats on him before I found an early twentieth century coat that we remade before painting on the skeleton. I then found a top hat and we had a mask specially made because it had to be articulated. You had to see his eyes in close up — Daniel’s eyes are very recognisable.
Oberhauser’s Moroccan lair costume worn by Christoph Waltz. Midnight blue silk jacket, S/B, rounded Nehru collar, single collar button fastening, welt hip pockets - ‘Timothy Everest’ tailored to fit Chest 39”, Waist 34”, Collar 15”; navy blue ‘Wooyoungmi’ shirt with black rubber ‘lace’ effect on collar & cuffs, button cuff, neckband collar; pale grey Margiela trousers with drawstring waist. Estimate: £6,000-8,000. This lot is offered in James Bond Spectre: Online, 16-23 February
What was the thinking behind Oberhauser’s costumes worn in his Moroccan lair?
I wanted to keep it simple, abstract, because the man is so bad that you don’t need much detail. All his menace is in his mind.
SPECTRE © 2015 Danjaq, MGM, CPII. SPECTRE, 007 and related James Bond Trademarks, TM Danjaq. © 2016 Danjaq and MGM. All Rights Reserved. All proceeds from the auction will benefit Médecins sans Frontières (MSF), other charitable organisations, and the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS).
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