Bond girl Gemma Arterton says 007 should be played by a man as fans would find the alternative ‘too outrageous’

Former Bond girl Gemma Arterton has spoken out about the idea of ​​a female 007, saying fans would ‘find it too outrageous’.

Following Daniel Craig’s final appearance as James Bond in 2021’s ‘No Time to Die’, the franchise’s producers have started looking for their new secret agent.

British actor Aaron-Taylor Johnson is considered the favorite to play the next 007, but names like Jodie Comer and Emilia Clarke have previously emerged as contenders to become the first female Bond.

However, Arterton, who co-starred with Craig Strawberry Fields in the 2008 Bond film ‘Quantum of Solace’, believes the idea of ​​a female Bond may not be in keeping with the tradition of the franchise.

“Isn’t a female James Bond like Mary Poppins played by a man?” she said the Times.

‘They talk about it, but I think people would find it too scandalous. Sometimes you just have to respect tradition.

‘I don’t regret doing a Bond film, but I’m perplexed as to why it has haunted me. I was only in the movie for five minutes.”

Arterton has previously sparked outrage after claiming she ‘sometimes fears the word feminist excludes men’.

The 38-year-old actress angered Woman’s Hour listeners after she told off the host in September Nuala McGovern on the film industry since the #MeToo movement, and how there has been a ‘major change’ for the better since 2018.

However, some felt ‘disappointed’ by what they said was the star suggesting we ‘change the language to make men feel more comfortable’.

In a clip from the show shared on InstagramGemma told the show: ‘Sometimes I worry that the word feminist excludes men.

“And I understand why it had to be this way, because we had to do our part and make ourselves stronger.

“But what I think it should be about is about balance, equality and inclusivity.”

She added that while she doesn’t view the word feminist as a “negative,” she feels to some that “it can feel like kind of an angry word or a divisive word.”

“I know for some people there is a negative connotation to it,” Gemma continued.

She also told Nuala that she has seen a change in the industry when it comes to women after she started working professionally in 2007.

“The difference, not only that there are more women working in all sectors, but the way all women are portrayed on screen and all of that has changed so much,” Gemma said.

Bind film producers previously toyed with the idea of ​​a female James Bond before casting Sean Connery, according to the biography Ian Fleming: The Complete Man.

Russian-American film director Gregory Ratoff pushed for the idea after buying the rights to 1967’s Casino Royale for around £50,000, and even considered casting American star Susan Hayward as the British spy, it is claimed.

The biography describes how producers thought casting a woman to play 007 would give the film wider appeal.

However, Bond author Fleming was apparently against the idea – and Connery was ultimately hired for the role.

The role of the main Bond villain is also one of the franchise’s most iconic, and yet it has never been filled by a female character in over 60 years. Rami Malek last starred in 2021’s No Time to Die as Lyutsifer Safin.

Saoirse Ronan has spoken about becoming the first female Bond villain, with the four-time Oscar nominee, who thrived in her role as Jo March in Little Women, telling The conversations: ‘I would really like to make an action movie! I want to play a Bond villain.”

It wasn’t the first time she expressed her 007 ambitions, as in her conversation The sunshe said: “I’ve always said I want to play a Bond villain. I would really like to do that. I mean it, I would. If anyone knows Barbara Broccoli, please tell her.”

Last year, producer Barbara Broccoli – who, along with half-brother Michael G. Wilson, has owned the James Bond franchise since 1995 – teased a “long way to go” for the casting.

There are often significant differences between different Bond eras, including the six-year gap between Timothy Dalton’s last 007 film, 1989’s License to Kill, and Pierce Brosnan’s first film, 1995’s Goldeneye.

There was also a four-year gap between Brosnan’s fourth and final film – 2002’s Die Another Day and Craig’s first, Casino Royale.

In March, it was reported that Johnson had been “formally offered the opportunity to play James Bond.”

The 33-year-old actor has yet to officially accept the role, but if he does, he will become only the seventh actor to play the iconic British secret agent since the franchise launched in 1962.

A source told The Sun: ‘Bond is Aaron’s job, should he want to accept it. The formal offer is on the table and they are waiting for an answer.

Responding to rumors that he could step into Bond’s shoes at the time, Aaron played coy, telling Numero: “I think it’s charming and wonderful that people see me in that role. I consider it a great compliment.’