There has been quite a bit of discussion from Hollywood celebrities and executives indicating they want to see James Bond either become a woman or have his race swapped. Both Idris Elba and James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli have made these suggestions. Even Thor star Chris Hemsworth hinted James Bond could become female. Well, The Mummy star and Daniel Craig’s wife, Rachel Weisz, has a very different view on what should happen with James Bond. Weisz believes people should focus on creating their own stories rather than “jumping on to the shoulders” of James Bond.
Weisz elaborates in an interview with The Telegraph:
[Fleming] devoted an awful lot of time to writing this particular character, who is particularly male and relates in a particular way to women. Why not create your own story rather than jumping on to the shoulders and being compared to all those other male predecessors? Women are really fascinating and interesting and should get their own stories.
This makes a lot of sense to me and it appears Hollywood might already be taking some of Weisz’s advice. Jennifer Lawrence will be starring in the upcoming spy thriller Red Sparrow. Lawrence’s character is a former ballerina Dominika Egorova who is recruited to become a Russian intelligence agent known as a sparrow. Sparrows are women who use their body as a weapon to acquire intelligence, but her first mission might unravel the security of both the United States and Russia.
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Marvel will also be adapting some of their more prominent female characters. They are already filming a Captain Marvel film with Brie Larson taking center stage. They are also planning a Black Widow solo film starring Scarlett Johansson. A film many Marvel fans have been wanting for years.
DC Comics also launched Wonder Woman with Gal Gadot last year to both critical and box office success. And in case we’ve all forgotten, Charlize Theron has starred in a number of roles including Atomic Blonde, Mad Max: Fury Road, and Æon Flux. There’s definitely exciting stories with women in their own stories who don’t have to jump on the shoulders of classic characters like James Bond. They can tell their own stories. Because as Rachel Weisz says, “women are really fascinating and interesting and should get their own stories.”
What do you think about Weisz’s comments? Do you agree with her?