20 Things You Didn't Know About Die Another Day

18. “Hong Kong’s Our Turf Now, Bond.”

Die Another Day
MGM/20th Century Fox

After escaping from a Royal Navy frigate in Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour, Double-0 Seven visits the Rubyeon Royale Hotel, which secretly houses a Chinese spy ring.

The hotel owed its name to elements surrounding the franchise’s fortieth anniversary: ruby, being the customary stone for celebrating a fortieth anniversary; eon, after Eon Productions, which produces the Bond films, and royale after Ian Fleming’s debut novel, Casino Royale.

The hotel was originally intended as a vehicle for reintroducing Michelle Yeoh’s Colonel Wai Lin from Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) who would have assisted Double-0 Seven as the main Bond Girl. An audacious fight sequence was also planned in which Bond and Wai Lin fought off some thugs in a descending lift in one of the city’s skyscrapers.

However, Yeoh’s return could not be agreed with her representatives, so Wai Lin was replaced firstly by Mr Chang (Ho Yi Wong) in greatly reduced scenes set in Hong Kong and by Halle Berry’s Jinx.


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I started writing for WhatCulture in July 2020. I have always enjoyed reading and writing. I have contributed to several short story competitions and I have occasionally been fortunate enough to have my work published. During the COVID-19 lockdown, I also started reviewing films on my Facebook page. Numerous friends and contacts suggested that I should start my own website for reviewing films, but I wanted something a bit more diverse - and so here I am! My interests focus on film and television mainly, but I also occasionally produce articles that venture into other areas as well. In particular, I am a fan of the under appreciated sequel (of which there are many), but I also like the classics and the mainstream too.