.gif)
Renard (James Bond)
Encyclopedia
Viktor Lavrentievich Zokas, better known by his alias of Renard, the Anarchist, is a fictional character
and a main antagonist in the James Bond
film The World Is Not Enough
. He was portrayed by Scottish
actor Robert Carlyle
.
as an assassin
, but was dismissed due to his mental instability. With the cessation of the Cold War
and the political climate changes, he became a terrorist
, with the sole purpose of spreading chaos. During a mission to dispatch Renard, MI6
agent 009 tracked him to Syria
and shot him in the head. Renard survived the attack, but the bullet could not be removed from his head, and was steadily working its way through his brain toward the cerebral cortex
. As it moved, it steadily deprived Renard of his ability to taste, smell, and (most notably) feel. However, even though the bullet will inevitably kill him, because he is unable to feel pain, he is able to push his physical limits further and further each day, granting him strength far beyond what a normal human being can take as he no longer registers the damage.
Some time prior to the events of the film, Renard kidnapped
Elektra King
, a billionaire heiress, and held her for ransom in Cyprus
. When Elektra's father refused Renard's ransom demands, she decided to collaborate with and seduce Renard. She even went as far as to mutilate her own earlobe, as Renard loved her too much to harm her. Unbeknownst to MI6, Renard was aiding Elektra in her oil pipeline scheme in a last ditch effort to commit the ultimate act of chaos: killing 8 million innocent people (including himself, stating more than once that he considers himself to be already dead due to the bullet) in a nuclear blast
, triggering a nuclear meltdown which would destroy Istanbul
.
, faking Stockholm syndrome
.
In the film, Elektra joins forces with Renard in a scheme to take control of the world's oil market. They launch an attack on MI6 headquarters in London
, which results in the death of Elektra's father. Originally, it is thought their target is her family's oil pipeline, but it is later revealed that Renard and Elektra damaged the pipeline to cover their real target of disrupting all oil supplies except for those belonging to the King family. Renard hijacks a Russia
n nuclear submarine
and intends to introduce weapons-grade plutonium
into the submarine's nuclear reactor
, causing a nuclear meltdown
. This would happen in the Bosphorus at Istanbul
, which would contaminate the city and the Bosporus for decades, preventing any shipping from the Black Sea
. Shipments of Caspian Sea
oil via all existing pipelines except for the King pipeline which terminated on Turkey
's Mediterranean
coast would have been affected.
Meanwhile, Elektra takes M
hostage for Renard and captures Bond, but is ultimately killed by 007 after she tells Renard to launch the submarine on its mission. Bond boards the sub and confronts Renard, revealing Elektra's death during the confrontation. The latter locks himself inside the reactor so that Bond cannot get to him. Just as the reactor is about to go into a critical state due to Renard's plutonium-laced fuel rod, Bond causes the reactor to shoot the rod out of the core at a high speed and into Renard's abdomen- his last words being to inform Renard that Elektra is waiting for him-, thus killing him and stopping the reaction.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
and a main antagonist in the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
film The World Is Not Enough
The World Is Not Enough
The World Is Not Enough is the nineteenth spy film in the James Bond film series, and the third to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was directed by Michael Apted, with the original story and screenplay written by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and Bruce Feirstein. It...
. He was portrayed by Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
actor Robert Carlyle
Robert Carlyle
Robert Carlyle, OBE is a Scottish film and television actor. He is known for a variety of roles including those in Trainspotting, Hamish Macbeth, The Full Monty, The World Is Not Enough, Angela's Ashes, The 51st State, and 28 Weeks Later...
.
Biography
As detailed in the film, Renard was trained by the KGBKGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
as an assassin
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
, but was dismissed due to his mental instability. With the cessation of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
and the political climate changes, he became a terrorist
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
, with the sole purpose of spreading chaos. During a mission to dispatch Renard, MI6
Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...
agent 009 tracked him to Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and shot him in the head. Renard survived the attack, but the bullet could not be removed from his head, and was steadily working its way through his brain toward the cerebral cortex
Cerebral cortex
The cerebral cortex is a sheet of neural tissue that is outermost to the cerebrum of the mammalian brain. It plays a key role in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language, and consciousness. It is constituted of up to six horizontal layers, each of which has a different...
. As it moved, it steadily deprived Renard of his ability to taste, smell, and (most notably) feel. However, even though the bullet will inevitably kill him, because he is unable to feel pain, he is able to push his physical limits further and further each day, granting him strength far beyond what a normal human being can take as he no longer registers the damage.
Some time prior to the events of the film, Renard kidnapped
Kidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
Elektra King
Elektra King
Elektra Vavra King is a fictional character, and primary antagonist in the 1999 James Bond film The World Is Not Enough. She is played by Sophie Marceau.- Fictional character history :...
, a billionaire heiress, and held her for ransom in Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
. When Elektra's father refused Renard's ransom demands, she decided to collaborate with and seduce Renard. She even went as far as to mutilate her own earlobe, as Renard loved her too much to harm her. Unbeknownst to MI6, Renard was aiding Elektra in her oil pipeline scheme in a last ditch effort to commit the ultimate act of chaos: killing 8 million innocent people (including himself, stating more than once that he considers himself to be already dead due to the bullet) in a nuclear blast
Nuclear explosion
A nuclear explosion occurs as a result of the rapid release of energy from an intentionally high-speed nuclear reaction. The driving reaction may be nuclear fission, nuclear fusion or a multistage cascading combination of the two, though to date all fusion based weapons have used a fission device...
, triggering a nuclear meltdown which would destroy Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
.
Film appearance
As the events of The World is Not Enough unfold, Renard is living with an indeterminate life expectancy, as the bullet could reach his cerebral cortex at any time and kill him. However, according to MI6 doctor Molly Warmflash, until the bullet kills him, Renard is expected to continue due to his inability to feel pain, allowing him to drive himself beyond ordinary physical limits. This unique trait is demonstrated in Renard's first on-screen appearance when he handles scalding pieces of volcanic rock in his hand without any sign of discomfort. After her 'escape' from Renard, Elektra claimed to be traumatizedPsychological trauma
Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event...
, faking Stockholm syndrome
Stockholm syndrome
In psychology, Stockholm Syndrome is an apparently paradoxical psychological phenomenon wherein hostages express empathy and have positive feelings towards their captors, sometimes to the point of defending them...
.
In the film, Elektra joins forces with Renard in a scheme to take control of the world's oil market. They launch an attack on MI6 headquarters in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, which results in the death of Elektra's father. Originally, it is thought their target is her family's oil pipeline, but it is later revealed that Renard and Elektra damaged the pipeline to cover their real target of disrupting all oil supplies except for those belonging to the King family. Renard hijacks a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n nuclear submarine
Nuclear navy
Nuclear navy, or nuclear powered navy consists of ships powered by relatively small onboard nuclear reactors known as naval reactors. The concept was revolutionary for naval warfare when first proposed, as it meant that these vessels did not need to stop for fuel like their conventional...
and intends to introduce weapons-grade plutonium
Plutonium
Plutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the chemical symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation...
into the submarine's nuclear reactor
Nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...
, causing a nuclear meltdown
Nuclear meltdown
Nuclear meltdown is an informal term for a severe nuclear reactor accident that results in core damage from overheating. The term is not officially defined by the International Atomic Energy Agency or by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission...
. This would happen in the Bosphorus at Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, which would contaminate the city and the Bosporus for decades, preventing any shipping from the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
. Shipments of Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
oil via all existing pipelines except for the King pipeline which terminated on Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
's Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
coast would have been affected.
Meanwhile, Elektra takes M
M (James Bond)
M is a fictional character in Ian Fleming's James Bond series, as well as the films in the Bond franchise. The head of MI6 and Bond's superior, M has been portrayed by three actors in the official Bond film series: Bernard Lee, Robert Brown and since 1995 by Judi Dench. Background =Ian Fleming...
hostage for Renard and captures Bond, but is ultimately killed by 007 after she tells Renard to launch the submarine on its mission. Bond boards the sub and confronts Renard, revealing Elektra's death during the confrontation. The latter locks himself inside the reactor so that Bond cannot get to him. Just as the reactor is about to go into a critical state due to Renard's plutonium-laced fuel rod, Bond causes the reactor to shoot the rod out of the core at a high speed and into Renard's abdomen- his last words being to inform Renard that Elektra is waiting for him-, thus killing him and stopping the reaction.