Actress Lashana Lynch Is the New 007

[tripplej]

Lot of news in regards to this topic.

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From GQ,

"...in the upcoming installment, directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga of True Detective, Bond is indeed getting replaced, not by Elba but by British actress Lashana Lynch, according to the Mail on Sunday. Most recently, Lynch appeared as a fighter pilot in Captain Marvel, alongside Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson."

According to the Mail:

A movie insider said: "There is a pivotal scene at the start of the film where M says 'Come in 007', and in walks Lashana who is black, beautiful and a woman. It's a popcorn-dropping moment. Bond is still Bond but he's been replaced as 007 by this stunning woman."

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Any thoughts?

[TRainH2O]

Better a woman than Ben Affleck, Justin Bieber, or even Robert Pattinson.  

[tripplej]

I agree.

I just hope the movie is good.

[AVSCraig]

I'll judge the movie on it's own merits. The question that just popped into my head is - since " James Bond " is a man, will the films be promoted as " 007 " movies with a female lead ? Because they can't really be James Bond movies if the male character is replaced by a woman. 

[tripplej]

I would guess that 007 would be the go forward for the franchise..

As to the official name of the agent that has the number 007, we will have to wait and see what the character name is.

[AVSCraig]

I was sort of hoping Idris Elba would be the new James Bond. He would kick ass !

[TRainH2O]

I'll judge the movie on it's own merits. The question that just popped into my head is - since " James Bond " is a man, will the films be promoted as " 007 " movies with a female lead ? Because they can't really be James Bond movies if the male character is replaced by a woman.

Maybe her name is Jamie but her friends call her James. 

I agree that Elba would make an interesting Bond. Although, whoever is next is going to have some big shoes to fill. To me, Craig is the best thing to happen to the franchise in decades. 

[AVSCraig]

Maybe her name is Jamie but her friends call her James.

I agree that Elba would make an interesting Bond. Although, whoever is next is going to have some big shoes to fill. To me, Craig is the best thing to happen to the franchise in decades.

I agree. When the 4K box set of the last 4 Bond films comes out, getting it is a no brainer. Skyfall in 4K - holy crap ! 

[Barry]

> I don’t want to get in trouble with the PC police but….

I am a big fan of Ian Fleming’s James Bond. Not only to I have All the novels, I am reading them over NOW!

Fist James Bond is a business and no one is going to put that in jeopardy because someone says “Political Correctness.”

It disappoints some people, who never read the books or care that the movies have to bring the essence of the character to the screen, to say that James Bond must always be a man, white and British.

Could the movie character “Shaft” be Asian or white?  You would never suggest that. James Bond bio, written in “You Only Live Twice” and shown in the movie “Skyfall” shows him as a white, British person.  More than that, Ian Fleming was racist.  Read Doctor No which take place in Jamaica, or especially Live and Let Die. Here, Fleming says all Black People believe in Voodoo, they all have strange dialects and, finally, the book “Live and Let Die” would make no sense if Bond was Black.

It might also surprise you if you have not read the books is that Fleming laid out the requirements for a British Secret Agent, mostly in Moonraker. The must be between 35-45 years of age, and then they are retired. (He also gives their salary and expenses!) At Age 46 Idris Elba would be too old to take over the role for the next 15 years.  The producers want someone for several movies, not just one.

Apparently in the new movie, Bond is retired (remember the age thing?) and there is a new 007. Not a new James Bond.  There are two new books out, “His World Never Dies: The Evolution of James Bond” by Dave Holcomb and The World of GoldenEye: A Comprehensive Study on the Seventeenth James Bond film and its Legacy by Nicolas Suszczyk.  Both books discuss how the Bond character and movies must change to keep up with the times, but at the same time the character of Bond must mostly be the Bond we remember.  When they changed the character in “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” with George Lazenby and “The Living Daylights” and “License to Kill” they almost lost the franchise.  They will not take that risk again.

[AVSCraig]

Good points all. Not sure who I would pick to replace D.C. as Bond then. 

[tripplej]

I suspect the change from male to female as well as white to black is to keep the movie going as long as possible as a money making machine. 

We shall see if this move helps or hurts the franchise. Time will tell.

[Barry]

JJJ: They are NOT replacing James Bond, they are just "giving" the number away. But, there is a possibility of starting a new series with a female star.

[SRW1000]

My guess is that they're just pumping up this idea to gain an audience, but then James Bond will be back as 007 by the end of the film after Lynch's character is dispatched.

They get they early hype of a black, female 00, but her introduction is supposed to happen at the beginning of the movie; that leaves plenty of time for Bond to come back by the end of the film.  I don't think Daniel Craig was signed to do little more that a cameo.

We've seen other numbered agents before, and I can't see anyone having a problem with one of them being played by any race or gender.  But James Bond was written as a white male, and should be kept that way because that's the way Fleming's created him.  

If they want to take the Double 00 franchise in another direction, it should be done with a different character.

[tripplej]

It will be interesting to see how they do this new 00. Granted, if the film fails miserably at the box office, they will have to revert back to the original formula. We shall see how this turns out..

[AVSCraig]

What do you want to bet there is a lot more to the story, and this is just a tease / publicity stunt ?