What are the realistic chances of getting a female James Bond in the future? According to a former James Bond casting director with experience casting 14 movies in the sleek spy series, the chances are very slim.
Debbie McWilliams, who was responsible for casting Daniel Craig as James Bond as well, states her opinions clearly during an onstage interview at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, as reported by Variety.
When an audience member asked her whether the fictional character created by Ian Fleming could be played by any other actor, or actress, for the matter of fact, who is not a white male.
McWilliams was, however, quite direct in her answer, as she replied that in her opinion, the chances of a woman or a person of color essaying the role on screen are low.
“Not in my opinion. No,” McWilliams replied before explaining. “Ian Fleming wrote a character, and that’s the character that stays. That’s what I think. I mean, other people might think otherwise, but I don’t think that.”
McWilliams, though not at the helm of casting anymore, does still have strong opinions on the same. Currently, the job falls to the new casting director Nina Gold and director Denis Villeneuve.
Who Can Replace Daniel Craig as James Bond?
Craig has acted in five James Bond movies, including “Casino Royale,” “Skyfall,” “Quantum of Solace,” among others. However, in 2019, during an appearance on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” in 2019, he revealed that he’d be hanging up his boots from playing Bond following the fifth movie.
Following Amazon’s takeover of the Bond franchise, the search for a new Bond has taken center stage.
Even “Spider-Man” actor Tom Holland has previously stated his interest in becoming Bond.
Other than him, Dua Lipa’s husband, Callum Turner, Henry Cavill, Jacob Elordi, and many others are being considered for the role.
Debbie McWilliams Reveals the Requirement for the Bond Actor
In her talk, McWilliams was further asked whether she ever looked for any specific characteristics when looking for the perfect actor.
The casting director, who zeroed in on Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig for the role, revealed that there indeed was, and it was the aura of danger surrounding the actor.
She explained, “So he’s got to have a kind of threat about him, you know. I’m not sure that Pierce Brosnan had that particularly, but he kind of embodied a different side of him. He was very good looking and suave, and all the rest of it.”
For Craig, she added, “And Daniel sort of changed that somewhat into the fact that you, you know … he was much tougher.”
“There’s no set rule,” McWilliams continued. “It’s whoever fits the bill, frankly, and it will be different for different directors and different producers. And, you know, it’s about to change dramatically, is all I can say. And I’m not sure whether I’ll be paying my money to go and see it or not. But there isn’t an easy answer to that question.”
