007 Producer Open to Race or Gender-Swapped James Bond
007 producer Barbara Broccoli is open to the idea of making some wild changes to the world’s greatest spy, James Bond.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Broccoli, whose father Albert “Cubby” Broccoli successfully adapted Ian Fleming’s Bond novels, said “These films tend to reflect the times so we always try to push the envelope a little bit. Anything is possible.”
She added, “Right now it’s Daniel Craig, and I’m very happy with Daniel Craig, but who knows what the future will bring?”
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In some ways, she’s both right and wrong. In the most obvious sense, the films still keep up with the times. As technology advances, so do the amazing gadgets the spy wields. But in many ways the core of who and what James Bond is has been pretty consistent even with the variety of actors who have portrayed him. Sean Connery, Roger Moore, George Lazenby, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig. The Bond actors shared similar mannerisms that are a trademark of the character.
If Barbara does decide to reinvent Bond, how could she do it?
For many fans, James Bond isn’t a singular person. But a designation that is given to one agent of MI-6 at any given time. This is one of the most popular and contested fan theories. It’s possible Broccoli might adopt this fan theory to allow anyone to play the role and not just the tall, dark, and handsome character audiences have come to know over a half-century.
In another scenario, Charles K. Feldman even acquired the rights to Casino Royale and made a 1967 spoof on James Bond after he failed to get the movie as part of the official series. In his film, David Niven plays a retired 007, who renames every single MI-6 agent to James Bond which included Joanna Pettet, Daliah Lavi, and Ursula Andress’ characters.
But the idea of changing James Bond into a new character like we’ve seen in Doctor Who recently just doesn’t feel right. In that series, the Timelord Doctor is able to regenerate into new forms and in a sense gain a new identity. A similar character, but not the same. James Bond isn’t quite like that and really doesn’t fit into that premise for many reasons, most importantly he’s human. It’s also a cheap trick to just recast and remold a character who has clearly been established over multiple decades and dozens of movies. Changing James Bond feels like it would be an attempt to make one of the most un-PC characters more palatable to an ever-sensitive audience.
Now I want to hear from you. Are you ready for a whole new take on Bond? A female James Bond, or how about a race-swapped Bond? Let me know in the comments below!
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