Although Daniel Craig couldn’t care less about the next James Bond actor, Gemma Arterton just hopes the franchise doesn’t stray too far from its source material.
After appearing in Quantum of Solace (2008), the BAFTA nominee gave her opinion on the idea of a woman playing the next 007 amid ongoing calls to diversify the character created by author Ian Fleming in 1935.
“Isn’t a female James Bond like Mary Poppins being played by a man?” she told The Times. “They talk about it, but I think people would find it too outrageous. Sometimes you just have to respect the tradition.
“I don’t regret doing a Bond film, but I am perplexed why it has followed me around. I was only in the film for five minutes,” added Arterton after portraying MI6 agent Strawberry Fields.
Arterton’s comment comes after Craig bluntly declared last month “I don’t care” who takes the reins from him as the next 007. In addition to Quantum of Solace, Craig also starred as Bond in Casino Royale (2006), Skyfall (2012), Spectre (2015) and No Time to Die (2021).
Daniel Craig and Gemma Arterton in Quantum of Solace (2008). (MGM/courtesy Everett Collection)
Meanwhile, franchise producer Barbara Broccoli has “a big decision” to make, previously noting that the next Bond will be a man, likely in his 30s and not necessarily white.
“Every time we cast a new actor, the films change,” Broccoli told the Associated Press last month. “It’s the excitement of a new Bond, a new direction. Every one of these people who took on the role offered something new and different.”
Craig took on the role after Pierce Brosnan, Timothy Dalton, Roger Moore, George Lazenby, David Niven and Sean Connery.