James Bond fans are split after Amazon Prime Video quietly added trigger warnings to almost every film in the 007 franchise.
Viewers noticed that all 25 official Bond films, which became available on Prime Video at the start of October, now open with a range of viewer advisories.
The first film, Dr. No (1962), carries a warning for ‘violence, alcohol use, smoking, and foul language.’
Later entries flag ‘nudity and sexual content,’ while some include advisories for ‘womanising’ – a nod to the franchise’s historically cavalier attitudes toward sex and gender.
However, some fans have pointed out that certain dated scenes, such as a sequence in 1967’s You Only Live Twice in which Sean Connery’s Bond disguises himself as Japanese by darkening his skin and altering his eyes, do not carry a warning for racial insensitivity.
The addition of the warnings follows Amazon’s 2022 acquisition of MGM Studios, which gave the tech giant the rights to distribute the Bond library, and, as of earlier this year, creative oversight of future instalments.
Conservative MP Sir John Hayes, a self-confessed Bond enthusiast, criticised the move, claiming it sanitises a character known for his hedonism, according to The Sun.
‘Everyone knows fast cars and fast living are what James Bond is about,’ he said. ‘It feels like they want to turn Bond into a Disney character.’
X user W.Smint23 agreed, writing: ‘We don’t need trigger warnings on anything. Stop mollycoddling humans. Let them watch and switch off if they don’t enjoy it.’
@TomDennison12 chimed in, posting: ‘When did people in the UK become so weak and feeble that a few words and jokes on old TV shows and films can bring them out in a sweat?’
But plenty of people aren’t sure what the problem is, with Reddit user Abdrews-PaulIM posting: ‘As long as they aren’t making any changes to the actual movies, I don’t really see a problem.’
Aromatic_Equipment62 agreed, writing: ‘To the people saying, “We’re a modern society! We know it’s wrong!” Think about this. My dad is a big Looney Tunes fan and he showed them to me when I was a little kid.
‘If the DVDs hadn’t had these disclaimers, I probably just would have taken the frequent racist jokes at face value and grown up with some very questionable views. The warnings aren’t for you, the “enlightened” adult. They’re for the person who doesn’t know any better.’
What MP Sir John Hayes gets wrong about trigger warnings…
Criticisms like Sir John Hayes’ reveal a common misunderstanding about trigger warnings.
These advisories are not about sanitising art or infantilising audiences; they are about transparency and consent – giving viewers, particularly those with past trauma or limited cultural context, the choice to engage with difficult material on their own terms.
What’s often missed in this debate is that trigger warnings are not confined to mental health.
They are about access and safety. If someone has epilepsy, for example, being alerted to flashing lights isn’t about political correctness, it’s a precaution that can prevent a medical emergency.
Likewise, a young viewer watching You Only Live Twice for the first time may not immediately grasp the historical context of Sean Connery’s Bond darkening his skin to pass as Japanese. A simple advisory helps frame such scenes not as acceptable behaviour, but as relics of a different era.
To suggest that acknowledging this context somehow ‘turns Bond into a Disney character’ mistakes emotional surprise for artistic integrity.
It assumes a universal audience experience — one where depictions of misogyny, racism, or violence are seen merely as aesthetic texture, rather than potentially distressing reminders of lived harm.
Far from diluting art, trigger warnings expand who gets to access it. They don’t tell viewers what to think; they give them the tools to choose how to watch. In that sense, they don’t weaken cultural participation but democratise it, ensuring that the enjoyment of a 007 film isn’t reserved only for those who can afford to look away.
The controversy comes on the heels of another Bond-related backlash.
Last week, Prime Video UK was spotted using digitally altered versions of vintage Bond posters that removed the spy’s iconic gun from his hand.
Promotional images for Spectre, GoldenEye, and Dr. No were all edited to eliminate firearms, resulting in visual tweaks, including a shot of Sean Connery appearing to pose stiffly with empty hands folded across his chest.
Following criticism online, Amazon swiftly replaced the edited images with alternative artwork. The newly selected posters notably feature no guns at all.
While Prime Video has not publicly commented on either the content warnings or the poster changes, the updates mark a striking shift in how one of cinema’s most enduring franchises is being reinterpreted for modern audiences.
For some, the move represents overdue sensitivity to the series’ outdated portrayals of women, race, and violence. For others, it’s an overreach, a sign that even the world’s most famous secret agent isn’t immune to the era of content disclaimers.
Metro has contacted Amazon Prime Video for comment.
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