Lee Tamahori

Tamahori next took on an even more iconic hero from fiction and film: Bond, James Bond. In 2002 the director helmed the 20th instalment of the 007 franchise, "Die Another Day," in which he cleverly paid tribute to the film's precursors in several visual homages, illicited the best performance yet from star Pierce Brosnan, turned Oscar-winner Halle Berry into an action hero-style Bond Girl and generally updated the franchise for the 21st Century. He next helmed the second film in the "xXx" franchise, an urban spin on Bond style spy flicks. Tamahori's distinctive action was the principal attraction of the less-impressive "xXx: State of the Union" (2005) which plugged Ice Cube into the lead role, replacing original star Vin Diesel.