James Bond in film of the funding for the Bond films, fell into financial difficulties following the box office failure of "Heaven's Gate" (1980), bringing uncertainty to the future of the funding. The situation was resolved in May 1981, when Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquired United Artists. Following "For Your Eyes Only", Roger Moore had expressed a desire to stop playing James Bond. His original contract had been for three films, a requirement fulfilled with "The Spy Who Loved Me". Subsequent films had been negotiated on a film-by-film basis. The producers engaged in a semi-public quest for the next actor to play Bond, which would be for
James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me include the Bond girl Anya Amasova and her lover Sergei Borzov, as well as Colonel-General Nikitin, a character from Fleming's novel "From Russia, with Love" who has since become head of the KGB. Other differences include the villain, Karl Stromberg, instead being named as Sigmund Stromberg. The change of Stromberg's given name, as well as the existence of SMERSH, may be in some way due to the controversy over "Thunderball", in which Kevin McClory was made aware of certain plot points of the film "The Spy Who Loved Me". At one point the villain of the film was to be