James Bond: Boss “open” to a non-binary 007 in the future
Who will step into Daniel Craig's shoes?
By Charley Ross
Bond producer Barbara Broccoli has hinted that a non-binary 007 could be in the franchise’s future.
It comes after Daniel Craig made his final turn as the iconic spy earlier this year in ‘No Time To Die’, sparking speculation about the identity of the next actor to tackle role.
During an appearance on the Girls On Film podcast, Bond producer Barbara Broccoli stated that the infamous double agent would remain a man in the next instalment.
But, when host Anna Smith asked about the possibility of a non-binary Bond, Broccoli responded: “Who knows, I think it’s open, you know? We just have to find the right actor.”
Speculation has been rife throughout Craig’s tenure as to who will replace him – with guesses ranging from ‘Normal People’ star Paul Mescal to Ibris Elba. The ‘Luther’ star has reportedly denied being in the running, but was enthusiastic about a non-white Bond.
“How amazing would it be to have a black James Bond?” he said. “It’s a sign of the times when we can stop talking about black, white, and colour.”
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Broccoli spoke more widely about her thoughts about the next Bond, stating that she didn’t think a woman should play the 007 agent.
“I believe in making characters for women and not just having women play men’s roles,” she explained. “I don’t think there are enough great roles for women, and it’s very important to me that we make movies for women about women.” She added that Bond could be any ethnicity or race.
That said, it could be a while before we get any concrete news on who will play James Bond next. Broccoli likened the worldwide intrigue to “asking a bride as she’s going up to the altar who’s her next husband going to be”.
“I want to let this film play and really celebrate Daniel’s incredible achievement that he has done over 16 years,” she said. “I don’t really want to think about who is going to be the next person until I absolutely have to.”
The list of potential Bond candidates is long, including ‘Get Out’s Daniel Kaluuya, Tom Hardy, James Norton, John Boyega and Tom Holland. Although, the Spiderman star has hinted at quitting acting in recent interviews.
“I started acting when I was 11 and I haven’t done anything else, so I’d like to go and do other things,” he told Sky News. Genuinely, I’m sort of…having a midlife crisis – at 25, I’m having like a pre-midlife crisis,” he said.