Former “Die Another Day” Bond lady Halle Berry weighed in on whether or not the long-lasting James Bond character ought to ever be performed by a girl.
Whereas serving on the jury for the Cannes Movie Competition on Tuesday, the 58-year-old actress addressed the continued dialogue about changing the fictional spy with a girl in a future franchise.
“I don’t know if 007 really should be a woman,” Berry responded. “In 2025, it’s nice to say, ‘Oh, she should be a woman.’ But, I don’t really know if I think that’s the right thing to do.”
Berry beforehand performed the character Giacinta “Jinx” Johnson within the 2002 movie “Die Another Day” alongside Pierce Brosnan as James Bond.
The concept of a feminine James Bond has been a hot-button difficulty in Hollywood for practically a decade.
In 2017, Berry equally dismissed Bond being performed by a girl in favor of extra authentic characters.
“I want [women] to be tough, but I don’t know if Bond should be a woman,” Berry stated.
“I mean, that series is steeped in history, you know, Ian Fleming’s stories. I don’t think you can change Bond to a woman.”
“We can create a new Bond character that’s a woman, and give her a new name, based on that theory, but I don’t know if Bond should be a woman,” she added.
Berry wasn’t the one former Bond lady who questioned the thought of gender-swapping James Bond over time.
In 2019, “The Spy Who Loved Me” actress Valerie Leon blasted the thought, arguing that the character was at all times profitable as a person.
“He’s a fantasy. So many men have wanted to be Bond and women have wanted to be with Bond. How can people fantasize about a woman as Bond? Men aren’t going to go for a woman as a killer or an assassin,” Leon stated.
In 2024, British actress Gemma Arterton, who starred in 2008’s “Quantum of Solace,” stated Hollywood ought to respect the custom of the character and referred to as out the absurdity of the thought.
“Isn’t a female James Bond like Mary Poppins being played by a man?” she remarked. “They talk about it, but I think people would find it too outrageous.”
The newest iteration of James Bond was performed by British actor Daniel Craig within the 2021 movie “No Time to Die.”
Although Amazon MGM Studios just lately made a deal to regulate the inventive rights to the 007 character, there have been no bulletins relating to the way forward for the franchise.
