Who wouldn’t want to read about James Bond in the days before he was old enough to drink? That’s the question that executives at Dynamite Entertainment likely didn’t ask themselves, as The Hollywood Reporter announces that the company has partnered with Ian Fleming’s estate to do just that. The deal grants Dynamite (also behind the new Django Unchained and Zorro adaptations) the rights to publish comic books and graphic novels featuring the smoothest spy the world has ever known.
This wouldn’t be the first time that James Bond has been featured in the world of comics. The first Bond comic strip appeared in 1958, when the British Daily Express began an adaptation of Casino Royale. Since then, Bond has appeared sporadically, via numerous licensing agreements, in comics published by DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, and Eclipse.
While allowing Dynamite to adapt any of the 14 Bond books Fleming published during his lifetime, the most noteworthy aspect of the deal is the part where the company is also given permission to create all-new material featuring the iconic spy. Publisher Nick Barrucci stressed this point, noting Dynamite was “excited to build upon Fleming’s source material with new canonical stories,” and eager “to be a small part of his legacy.”
As such, part of Dynamite’s announcement included plans to begin publishing stories that take place before the events of 1953’s Casino Royale. While this could conceivably entail stories set during the early years of Bond’s spy career, other recent franchise expansions suggest it’s far more likely that company execs are excited to show eager fans just how rough it was for young James to open his first lemonade stand.