An era has once again ended. With his fifth and final installment wrapped, Daniel Craig can now hang up the tuxedo for good, making way for another suave, handsome spy of Her Majesty’s Secret Service to take the Aston Martin wheel.
His era was one of “realism” – to a point. Clearly influenced by the shaky cam of the Bourne Identity, at least for his first two films Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace, and the grit of the Christopher Nolan Batman reboots, these movies featured a Bond that didn’t swing wildly at goons that, equally as wildly, fell out of frame, but offered effective action scenes with jabs and crunches.
This Bond was flawed, reckless, and arrogant in Casino Royale, wounded in body and pride in Skyfall, and lovesick and impulsive in Spectre and No Time to Die. All his villains were given an equally “realistic” makeover, their physical deformities upgraded with superior makeup, their “quirky” personalities toned down from cartoonish levels to unsettling, their motivations somewhat relatable, like owing money or festering mummy issues.
So, what’s next for Bond? There is a lot of chat around what should and shouldn’t happen with the franchise, with the one agreed-upon element being that it should continue. Read on for our choices on what Bond should improve going forward.
IMAGE: https://pixabay.com/illustrations/james-bond-spy-movie-credit-eye-5143053/ (Source: Pixabay)
Who is Bond?
It’s the conversation that gets everyone talking, even if you’ve never watched a single Bond film: who should play Bond?
However, knowing who should play Bond starts with knowing who Bond is fundamentally, and it’s often forgotten who the biggest names are right now. Bond is smooth-talking, action-heavy, charming to the ladies – and the men it seems – and British to the core.
A suspected policy of only hiring British actors to play Bond, if only to avoid the illusion-shattering disaster of a constantly shifting accent. This would eliminate fan favorites like Timothee Chalamet, but still leaves a lot of options.
A past appreciation for up-and-coming actors would also eliminate names like Henry Caville, although he would suit the role in many ways. Arguably more than the suits Superman.
Crucially, Bond is posh. He is a South Londoner and every stereotype that comes with. He is not Cockney, not Northern, and even the best Bond ever tried to hide his “Scottish” accent. So that, and the fact that they are too big strikes off Idris Elba and Tom Hardy. They are both at their best when playing wild characters, rather than the subdued charm that Bond exudes. To use either of them would be a waste.
But just to revisit the subject, Skyfall confirmed that Bond is canonically Scottish, and author Ian Fleming has written the character as half Scottish and Swiss. That seems like a good enough reason to look in the direction of The Bodyguard’s and Game of Thrones’ Richard Madden. Maybe he could explore his roots and discover a Canadian villain half-brother and have to play world-class casinos in Canada.
So that leaves a plethora of actors who exude that sophisticated charm. Tom Hiddleston is often pointed at to convey the character of Bond, and he has touched upon it with work like High Rise and The Night Manager but if the studio goes with someone, proven, but lesser-known, they’d be better looking at either Henry Golding or Rege-Jean Page. Both of them exude a quiet charm and suave personality, plus would satisfy the audience that is begging for a POC Bond.
How about a change?
As for a female Bond, there are options there. Even if No Time to Die writer Phoebe Waller-Bridge and a few other voices have voiced their need for their own female icon, rather than taking over as Bond, a la Dr. Who, there are still whispers of who would make a good female Bond. Do candidates include Emily Blunt and Thandie Newton who would fulfill the POC quota, or maybe Fleabag herself?
Other names thrown into the mix have included Harry Styles, who has proven his acting chops in the harrowing WWII film Dunkirk, Dan Stevens who has the posh aspect nailed due to his time on Downton Abbey, and Dev Patel, whose string of dramatic leading roles have been impressing fans and directors since Slumdog Millionaire.
But undoubtedly, as the track record of Bonds has shown, no one will predict the next Bond accurately. It will be someone no one considered who will slot effortlessly into the role. It’s simply a matter of waiting to see who comes on your screen.