The end of June will mark the 47th anniversary of the release of Moonraker, a blockbuster James Bond film that utilized the crystal clear waters of Silver Springs for an iconic underwater action sequence.
Principal photography for the movie took place between August 14, 1978, and February 27, 1979.
While it is unclear exactly when the production crew filmed its local scenes in Silver Springs during that window, Moonraker was officially released in the United States on June 29, 1979, which was just three days after the film made its premiere in the United Kingdom on June 26, 1979.
Starring Roger Moore as the titular spy and Richard Kiel as the iconic villain “Jaws,” the film grossed over $210 million at the box office. Most of those overall earnings came from international theaters, which brought in $140 million.
According to an article by ScreenRant.com, when adjusted for inflation, the film’s box office earnings rank it among the top ten in the franchise’s 64-year history. It currently trails several of the modern films released past the year 2000 that benefited from significantly larger audiences, including Casino Royale, Spectre, and Skyfall.
In Moonraker, Bond investigates the midair hijacking of a Moonraker space shuttle. His dangerous mission leads him to Hugo Drax (Michael Lonsdale), a billionaire industrialist with a sinister plan to release a deadly nerve gas and repopulate Earth with a “master race” from his space station.
Bond teams up with CIA agent Dr. Holly Goodhead (Lois Chiles) and survives multiple assassination attempts by henchmen Chang (Toshiro Suga) and Jaws. Bond ultimately destroys Drax’s space-based operation with the help of U.S. space marines and persuades Jaws to turn against Drax, leading to a climactic laser battle and the rescue of Earth from mass extinction.
During the film, Bond wrestles an anaconda underwater in a voodoo ceremony sequence with Drax. He is sent into a pool via a trapdoor and engages with the anaconda until he bests the animal by stabbing it through the head.
Although the intense underwater sequence only lasts for thirty seconds of screen time, the crystal clear waters of Silver Springs offered a clean shot that was well worth the on-site film shoot.
Multiple productions have filmed in Silver Springs for that exact same reason, including Thunderball, which is another beloved installment in the James Bond film franchise.
Do you have any memories of Moonraker filming in the area? Share them with us in a comment below or, if you have more to say, write a letter to the editor.