Dame Helen Mirren has declared that a woman should not play James Bond, insisting the character must remain male. In an interview with Saga magazine, the Oscar-winning actress said: 'I'm such a feminist, but James Bond has to be a guy. You can't have a woman. It just doesn't work. James Bond has to be James Bond, otherwise it becomes something else.'
Mirren made the comments while promoting her new film Thursday Murder Club, in which she co-stars with former 007 actor Pierce Brosnan. Brosnan, who played Bond in four films, also weighed in on the search for the next actor, telling the same publication: 'I wish them well. I'm so excited to see the next man come on the stage and to see a whole new exuberance and life for this character.'
This is not the first time Mirren has addressed the topic. In a previous interview with The London Standard, she described the Bond character as 'drenched and born out of profound sexism'. She added: 'Women have always been a major and incredibly important part of the Secret Service... If you hear about what women did in the French Resistance, they're amazingly, unbelievably courageous. So I would tell real stories about extraordinary women who've worked in that world.'
The debate over a potential female Bond comes as the franchise prepares for its next instalment. Deadline recently reported that Steven Knight will write the script and Denis Villeneuve will direct the upcoming film at Amazon MGM Studios.
