The new James Bond film will once again feature a car from Aston Martin, its longest-running partner in one of the world's most well-loved spy classics. The film, which will be under the direction of Sam Mendes, will mark the 12th time that Bond will drive an Aston Martin. The 50-year relationship with the British sports car maker is worthy of celebration.
The Aston Martin DB10 will be featured in Spectre, the 24th installment in the James Bond series, and Daniel Craig will be behind the wheel. The film is set to hit theaters on Nov. 6, 2015.
According to the luxury car maker, it is building only 10 units. The model was developed particularly for the movie. This means that both Aston Martin and James Bond fans will have to settle with seeing the car only in the movie as it will not become commercially available.
"Production will be limited to 10 of the bespoke sports cars, developed by designers, engineers and highly skilled craftspeople at Aston Martin's Gaydon headquarters," said Aston Martin.
Limiting the number of the DB10 is a novel strategy. In the past, moviegoers could purchase a car from a Bond movie at a local dealer. The Ian Fleming spy classic has been helping to promote the brand throughout the years.
After all, the car maker does not really concern itself with all-out marketing. The number of car sales each year is not that large, and this could be attributed to the vehicle's price. A 2014 DB9, for instance, is said to retail at $183,700.
In 2011, Aston Martin sold 4,200 units. The following year, it sold 3,800. Skyfall, the last James Bond film, was the franchise's highest-grossing installment, earning US$1.1 billion in total revenues worldwide. The film, which was released in 2013, featured the DB5 from Goldfinger.
"To be partnering once again with EON Productions is great news for this company and for everyone around the world that loves to see Bond at the wheel of an Aston Martin," said Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer.
Film producer Michael Wilson said that they always come back to using a car from Aston Martin even though they have also used other cars from time to time. These include the BMW-made gadget-packed cars and motorcycles used in the three films that starred Pierce Brosnan.
Apart from appearing in a number of James Bond films, Aston Martin cars have also appeared in video games such as Everything or Nothing, Nightfire, From Russia with Love, and Agent Under Fire.
