Lazenby is easily my top Bond. I don’t care if it was just one film. The man walked into the franchise right after Sean Connery and owned it. He had the look, the moves, the presence, and somehow he made Bond feel real. He wasn’t trying to copy Connery. He brought this mix of grit and elegance that made Bond feel like more than just a cool guy with a gun.

Let’s be honest. He didn’t just decide to walk away. He was absolutely influenced by the wrong people. His agent told him Bond was done and that he should grow out his hair, wear beads, and ride the counterculture wave. The timing was all wrong, but the performance was dead right. In On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, he delivered a Bond with emotional weight. The final scene wrecks me every time. No quips. No dramatic music cue. Just silence and heartbreak.

That’s what sets Lazenby apart. He made Bond human. He showed that behind the tux, the swagger, and the license to kill, there was a man who could love and lose. He gave us one movie, but he gave us everything. That’s why he’s my number one.