Female James Bond would be “too outrageous” for fans, claims former Bond girl

The former Bond girl Gemma Arterton has said that “people would find it too outrageous” for a woman to play 007.

Arterton played Strawberry Fields in the 2008 movie Quantum Of Solace, an employee at the British consulate in Bolivia who is seduced by Daniel Craig’s James Bond.

That was Craig’s second of five entries in the legendary spy franchise, with his run in the role concluding with 2021’s No Time To Die. While Bond producers have not confirmed who will replace him, it has not stopped speculation from being rampant for several years.

Now, Arterton, who went on to star in films such as The Disappearance Of Alice Creed and Made In Dagenham, has commented on the future of the role in an interview with The Times. “Isn’t a female James Bond like Mary Poppins being played by a man?” she said. “They talk about it, but I think people would find it too outrageous. Sometimes you just have to respect the tradition.”

She went on to talk about being “perplexed” as to why her appearance in Quantum Of Solace has “followed me around” for the last 16 years. “I was only in the film for five minutes,” she added.

Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson have said that the new Bond will take the franchise in “a new direction”, but no solid information has yet emerged about the actor’s identity.

Tom Hardy has long been considered among the favourites, with the actor responding to the rumours as far back as 2017. Last year, he was named as the public’s second choice for the role, behind Idris Elba.

It was, however, reported in March that EON Production had offered Aaron Taylor-Johnson the job after he impressed Broccoli in a screen test. The actor was asked about the rumours in April, but swerved the question, as he had done multiple times previously. Former Bond actor Pierce Brosnan also weighed in on the potential casting, showing his support for Taylor-Johnson.

One of the other actors considered among the frontrunners, Henry Cavill, said earlier this year that he may be “too old now” to take on the role, while Saoirse Ronan recently pitched for her partner Jack Lowden to get the nod.

Craig, meanwhile, has recently said that playing Bond was “emotionally difficult” for both him and his family, and claimed that he would not have accepted his role as a gay man in new film Queer while playing Bond as it would have looked “reactionary”.

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