Daniel Craig to Exit James Bond Role, Says Next 007 Shouldn't Be a Woman
12:54 GMT 21.09.2021 (Updated: 13:45 GMT 01.03.2022)
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The latest James Bond movie finally hits the big screen worldwide next week after being delayed several times because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It will be Daniel Craig's fifth and final 007 movie.
Daniel Craig, who has played James Bond for longer than any other actor, says his successor as 007 should not be a woman.
In an interview with the Radio Times, Craig said: “Why should a woman play James Bond when there should be a part just as good as James Bond, but for a woman?”
The next generation.
— Aston Martin (@astonmartin) September 14, 2021
Vantage continues the legacy of “Britain's First Supercar”.@007 is reunited with the V8 in NO TIME TO DIE – in cinemas from 30th September.#NoTimeToDie #AstonMartin #LicenceToThrill pic.twitter.com/f3Hr6A1AFG
Craig said the character of James Bond, as written by Ian Fleming in his novels, was a man and it was not right for the role to be rewritten in order for a woman to play it.
Craig said: "I believe we should be creating new characters for women - strong female characters. I’m not particularly interested in taking a male character and having a woman play it. I think women are far more interesting than that."
"There should simply be better parts for women and actors of colour,” he added.
The latest 007 movie, No Time To Die, premieres in London next week but there has been feverish speculation about who will replace Craig in the role for the 26th Bond film.
Among the betting favourites are Tom Hardy, James Norton, Luke Evans and Regé-Jean Page.
The legendary secret agent James Bond (Daniel Craig) and Camille (Olga Kurilenko) in the movie "Quantum of Solace". Material supplied by the Sony Pictures Releasing CIS
© Sputnik / Sony Pictures Releasing CIS
/ The speculation that the next iteration might be female followed on from the casting of Jodie Whittaker as Doctor Who, the first woman to play that role.
But in a 2020 interview with Variety, the franchise’s producer Barbara Broccoli said: “James Bond can be of any colour, but he is male.”
In No Time To Die, Craig stars along with Rami Malek, Lea Seydoux, Lashana Lynch, Ben Whishaw and Naomie Harris as his sidekick Moneypenny.
James Bond 'could be a man or woman' of any race or age, says No Time To Die actor Lashana Lynch https://t.co/qxfFXnx4s7
— Gaurav Pingle 🇮🇳 🚩🌎 (@GPingleCorpLaws) September 13, 2021
Lashana plays Nomi, an MI6 agent who is rumoured to inherit Bond's iconic number 007 in the film....
The premier takes place at London's Royal Albert Hall on 28 September. The film was originally set for release in April 2020 but was delayed several times as the pandemic closed cinemas and the producers feared they would lose money.
The last Bond film, Spectre, grossed US$880 million worldwide.
