Casino Royale Has A Cameo From A Former James Bond Girl

There's an interesting parallel between 1997's "Batman & Robin" and 2002's "Die Another Day." The former almost killed off the Batman cinematic saga before it had even existed for more than a decade, while Pierce Brosnan's swan song as James Bond almost put an end to what had been, ever since 1962's "Dr. No," cinema's most enduring franchise. Then, in 2005, Batman got what became known as a "gritty reboot," with Christopher Nolan reinventing the iconic hero for his "Batman Begins" origin story. The following year, Bond would get the same treatment, with what remains the best Bond movie ever made: "Casino Royale."

Both movies turned around flailing franchises, and both movies took a more grounded approach to their protagonist, ditching much of the traditions that had come to define both franchises in order to introduce something truly fresh. In 007's case, Daniel Craig gave us all a version of Britain's greatest spy who was rougher around the edges than any of the previous incarnations of the character. Troubled, and maybe even a little haunted, Craig's spy was the first version of Bond that felt truly dangerous, unpredictable, and realistic. That sensibility carried over to the movie as a whole. 

"Casino Royale" wasn't above subverting well-established Bond tropes. In fact, it relished the opportunity, having Craig's 007 dismiss the question of whether he wants his Martini shaken or stirred with a curt, "Do I look like I give a damn?" "Casino Royale" even dispensed with such well-established Bond standards as Q and his gadgets, signaling the arrival of a whole new era in the franchise.

But just because there was a distinct subversive streak to "Royale" and its treatment of Bond history doesn't mean the film was entirely dismissive of the character's past. The Aston Martin was in evidence, as were the Bond girls and the tuxedo. Beyond those classic Bond elements, there was also a direct link between "Casino Royale" and a Sean Connery era Bond girl. So while Craig's debut deliberately subverted much of franchise history, it remains forever connected to a classic entry in the 007 saga.

1967's "You Only Live Twice" was the fifth installment in the Bond franchise, and it saw Sean Connery's spy thwarting a global conspiracy led by Donald Pleasance's Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Before any of the action unfolds, however, the movie opens with Bond laying in a Hong Kong hotel bed alongside Tsai Chin's Ling. Though she might not be remembered as one of the all-time best James Bond "girls" in franchise history, she is notable for getting Bond killed. At least, that's how it appears. Ling traps 007 in a Murphy bed before goons enter the room and plaster the wall with bullets. Of course, we later learn that Bond has faked his own death, but for a brief moment, it seemed as though Ling was the Bond girl that offed the famous sleuth.

Chinese-British actress Tsai Chin continued to enjoy a prolific career after her short-lived stint as a Bond girl. The daughter of an Opera singer, Chin attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and she was clearly destined for more than being one of James Bonds' many lovers. In the years after "You Only Live Twice," Chin continued acting in China, moving to Hollywood in the 1990s and appearing in multiple projects like "The Joy Luck Club," in which she played the role of Auntie Lindo. She later appeared in an episode of the Marvel Cinematic Universe series "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." as well as "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings." But in 2006, nearly 40 years after her portrayal of Ling, she returned to the Bond franchise, this time as a mysterious figure whose past is never explained.

In "Casino Royale," we're introduced to Mads Mikkelsen's Le Chiffre, a banker to the world's criminals. When we first see him, he's closing a deal with an African warlord, but the second time he crops up, he's sitting aboard his private yacht playing poker with two others. One of these players is Madam Wu, a mysterious figure whose background is never explained, and she just so happens to be played by none other than Tsai Chin. Though she doesn't have any lines, Madame Wu does reappear later in the film during the high-stakes poker match that Bond attends in Montenegro at the titular hotel. After that, however, we don't see any more of the character.

Tsai Chin isn't the only actor to portray different characters in multiple Bond movies. Swedish actress Maud Adams played two different Bond girls, first as Andrea Anders in 1974's "The Man with the Golden Gun" and then as the title character in 1983's "Octopussy." Meanwhile, Joe Don Baker actually played two different characters across three Bond films, having portrayed villain Brad Whitaker in "The Living Daylights" (1987) before playing CIA agent Jack Wade in "GoldenEye" (1995) and Tomorrow Never Dies (1997). British actor Charles Gray also appeared in "You Only Live Twice," playing British Intelligence officer Dikko Henderson. He later played Bond's arch nemesis Ernst Stavro Blofeld in 1971's "Diamonds Are Forever" — an underrated Bond movie deserving of more respect. But Tsai Chin is surely the actor with the biggest gap between her Bond appearances.

Was Madame Wu a Quantum member? A criminal that uses Le Chiffre's illicit banking services? Or just a card player with money to burn? None of it is ever explained, but it's almost better that way. This mysterious poker player just so happens to be a Bond veteran whose covert cameo links "Casino Royale" to one of the golden age Bond movies, even while the rest of the film concerns itself with renouncing much of 007's storied history.