The James Bond franchise is the longest one in film history, dating back to 1962's From Russia With Love. Plenty of iconic actors have stepped into 007's tuxedo over the years, often accompanied by a Bond Girl or two in the process. The upcoming 25th Bond movie will be Daniel Craig's final performance as the character, and now it looks like the cast is coming together.
News recently broke that Rami Malek was reportedly circling Bond 25 to play the mysterious film's villain. While there hasn't been an official confirmation either way regarding the recent Oscar winner's involvement, it appears the new Bond Girl may have been chosen as well. And the name being thrown around is another Academy Award winner: Lupita Nyong'o.
This news comes to us from Deadline, and is sure to excite cinephiles out there. Lupita Nyong'o burst on the scene in a major way in 2013's Twelve Years a Slave, earning an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in the process. Since then, Nyong'o has been keeping herself quite busy, with roles in major franchise like Nakia in Black Panther and Maz Kanata in the Star Wars franchise, plus an upcoming role in Jordan Peele's Get Out follow up, Us. She's an actress who can seemingly do it all, including going toe to toe with Daniel Crag's James Bond.
Of course, there is no guarantee that Lupita Nyong'o will end up taking a role in Bond 25. Deadline's report simply mentions that she's on the top of the short list, with the folks at Eon Productions were hoping to get her involved in Daniel Craig's swan song as James Bond. Considering how her star power only continues to grow with each exciting project, it stands to reason that those developing Bond 25.
007 fans are eager for any and all information about Bond 25, as its been a number of years since Spectre arrived in theaters in 2015. During press for that blockbuster's release, Daniel Craig expressed his interest in departing the role sooner rather than later. He actually said he'd rather slit his writs than do another Bond film, but that was likely due to exhaustion. In the end he decided to pop back in for one more appearance, although the 25th movie's contents and cast are still largely a mystery.
Meanwhile, Lupita Nyong'o has a lot going for her at the moment. She's set to reprise her role as Maz Kanata in J.J. Abrams' Episode IX, although the size of her role is a mystery. Maz is one of the most mysterious new characters, so hopefully Nyong'o has plenty to do in the upcoming blockbuster. She also plays Nakia in the MCU, although her fate in the wake of Thanos' finger snap of death is currently a mystery.
Bond 25 is currently set to arrive in theaters on April 8th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
