After 14 years, Daniel Craig’s record-breaking tenure as James Bond comes to an end this April with No Time to Die. And with the actor on his way out, speculation is at an all-time high over who will be found to replace him. In recent years, discussions of whether 007 should be recast as a person of color have become a lot more prevalent, as has the idea that Bond could even be reimagined as a woman. Now, an official word has finally been given on both of these options.
Variety has shared a new interview with EON producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson. The pair have been in charge of the franchise for decades and so know the character better than anyone. As such, they have strong ideas about who Bond is and who he isn’t. And, according to Broccoli, their vision for the hero means that he doesn’t have to be white, but he does have to be male.
“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.”
While there’s been an increasing call for Bond to be gender-flipped, other people have made the point that it would be far better to create new female characters to equal Bond. Craig’s own wife Rachel Weisz is one of these people, in fact. So, Broccoli’s comments here will likely be supported by many, especially if she delivers on her promise to create these new leading female roles.
No Time to Die should provide at least one of them. It’s been widely rumored that Lashana Lynch’s Nomi is another 00 agent – possibly even the new 007. We Got This Covered has reported that Nomi could get her own spinoff movie in the future, as well. As for Bond’s own future, Broccoli might be suggesting here that there’s a strong chance that an actor of color could replace Craig. But keep the speculation going for now, as we likely won’t find out the identity of Bond no. 7 for a long time yet.
