Since it was announced that No Time To Die would be Daniel Craig’s final movie as James Bond, Hollywood has been having an ongoing conversation about who could replace him as 007 in the franchise’s future. And these days, more women are finding leading roles in popular franchises such as Star Wars and the MCU. So why not a female Bond? Longtime franchise producer Barbara Broccoli has explained exactly why it’s just not going to happen. In her words:
He can be of any color, but he is male. I believe we should be creating new characters for women - strong female characters. I’m not particularly interested in taking a male character and having a woman play it. I think women are far more interesting than that.
There you have it. It’s as simple as that. She’s the daughter of Albert R. Broccoli, who first began adapting Ian Fleming’s James Bond character in the ‘60s with Dr. No. Following Albert’s death in 1996, Barbara has taken over control of the franchise with her half-brother Michael G. Wilson. It’s certainly enough authority to tell fans one thing: James Bond will continue to be a male character. Yet, his ethnicity could be switched up by a future actor who takes up the mantle.
Barbara Broccoli’s words to Variety follows the backlash that came about when it was rumored that Captain Marvel’s Lashana Lynch may be taking the mantle of “007” in No Time To Die since Daniel Craig’s James Bond will no longer be on active duty when the film picks up. Lynch is said to be a prominent agent in the upcoming movie as Bond takes on one more mission, but to be clear, the film wasn’t expected to set up to have her replace Craig in upcoming movies.
Since names such as Idris Elba, Richard Madden and Outlander’s Sam Heughan have been thrown around as possibilities to continue the James Bond franchise, so has Charlize Theron. But Barbara Broccoli isn’t the only one who is against the idea. Daniel Craig’s wife and Casino Royale costar Eva Green echoed her statements, saying it just doesn’t make sense for Bond to be played by a woman.
The character is heavily rooted in masculinity, and for a future version to be portrayed by a woman, it would cancel out the character’s long history. Women can certainly find their own place in the action or espionage genre without having to play the female version of something that’s already been made popular by male actors.
No Time To Die certainly looks to be making strides in elevating the “Bond Girl” for the upcoming release. Along with Lashana Lynch, Knives Out actress Ana de Armas will star and Fleabag and Killing Eve writer Phoebe Waller-Bridge has a script credit on the film (the first woman to write for Bond since the ‘60s). Plus, Billie Eilish wrote the No Time To Die theme song.
Daniel Craig’s last outing as 007 hits theaters on April 10.
