8 Ridiculous Origins To The Names Of Iconic Movie Characters

8. Blofeld Is An English Name Ian Fleming Nabbed From A Schoolmate

Is there a more evil name than Ernst Stavro Blofeld (when delivered with some sense of menace, of course, not the blaze murmuring of Christoph Waltz)? Well, probably, given that it's actually a pretty standard surname. According to cricket commentator Henry Blofeld, Fleming used his father's name as inspiration for the supervillain - the pair had attended Eton together - which means the Germanic sounding title (in Spectre it's said to be Austrian) is actually of Anglo-Saxon origins; it derives from the town of Blofield in Norfolk.

That it now carries such potent menace is really all down to Ian Fleming's excellent characterisation, Cubby Broccoli's restraint in introducing the supervillain to the film series and Donald Pleasance's incredibly chilling inaugural performance, forever shaping a common name to a degree rivalled only by "Homer" (seriously, who would ever name their kid that now?).

Although if the sense of Blofeld's name has changed a bit, that's nothing compared to 007 himself; the name James Bond was originally chosen because it was the most utterly boring thing Fleming could come up with, reflecting his initial notion that the man was little more than a blunt tool.