<Tr> <Th> Budget </Th> <Td> $12 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> $41.7 million </Td> </Tr> <P> Casino Royale is a 1967 British - American spy comedy film originally produced by Columbia Pictures featuring an ensemble cast . It is loosely based on Ian Fleming's first James Bond novel . The film stars David Niven as the "original" Bond, Sir James Bond 007 . Forced out of retirement to investigate the deaths and disappearances of international spies, he soon battles the mysterious Dr. Noah and SMERSH . The film's tagline: "Casino Royale is too much...for one James Bond!" refers to Bond's ruse to mislead SMERSH in which six other agents are pretending to be "James Bond", namely, baccarat master Evelyn Tremble (Peter Sellers), millionaire spy Vesper Lynd (Ursula Andress), Bond's secretary Miss Moneypenny (Barbara Bouchet), Mata Bond (Joanna Pettet), Bond's daughter by Mata Hari; and British agents "Coop" (Terence Cooper) and "The Detainer" (Daliah Lavi). </P> <P> Charles K. Feldman, the producer, had acquired the film rights in 1960 and had attempted to get Casino Royale made as an Eon Productions Bond film; however, Feldman and the producers of the Eon series, Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, failed to come to terms . Believing that he could not compete with the Eon series, Feldman resolved to produce the film as a satire . The budget escalated as various directors and writers got involved in the production, and actors expressed dissatisfaction with the project . </P>

Who played the first james bond in casino royale