James Bond 'has to be a guy', says Helen Mirren
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Dame Helen Mirren has said James Bond should be played by a man,
even though she is "such a feminist".
In a new interview with Saga Magazine, the Oscar-winning actor
said "you can't have a woman. It just doesn't work. James Bond
has to be James Bond, otherwise it becomes something else".
Amazon MGM Studios will produce the next iteration of the spy
franchise, with Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight set to
write what will become the 26th film in the series.
The Studios previously said they were planning a "fresh" take
on franchise but would honour the "legacy" of the "iconic
character".
The 80-year-old is currently starring opposite former James Bond
actor Pierce Brosnan in the much anticipated film adaption of
The Thursday Murder Club, in which she plays a retired spy.
Brosnan, 72, also told the magazine that he believed a male actor
should continue to play Bond and he was excited to "see a whole
new exuberance and life for this character."
He starred in four Bond films during his tenure as 007, starting
with GoldenEye in 1995 and finishing with Die Another Day, which
was released in 2002.
Mirren has previously been quoted saying that the concept of
James Bond was "born out of profound sexism", and that women have
always been an "incredibly important part" of the Secret Service.
Mirren and Brosnan are not the first to push back on the idea of
Bond being played by a woman, with the sentiment echoed by
Brosnan's Die Another Day costar, Halle Berry.
"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," she
said, speaking at Cannes Film Festival in May.
The James Bond franchise was owned by the Broccoli family for more
than 60 years, but producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson
sold creative control to Amazon for a reported $1bn (£760m) earlier
this year.
Speculation about who will next play the titular character has been
rife, with British actors Aaron Taylor-Johnson and James Norton
rumoured as frontrunners for the part.
There is no current release date set for the next film.
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