Former "Die Anter Day" Bond girl Halle Berry thinks whether the iconic James Bond character should be played by a woman.
The 58-year-old actress spoke about ongoing discussions about replacing fictional spies with women in a future franchise while serving for a jury for the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday.
Berry replied: "I don't know if 007 is really supposed to be a woman." "In 2025, it's nice to say, 'Oh, she should be a woman.' But, I really don't know if I think this is the right choice."
Berry previously played the role of James Bond in the 2002 film Die Die and Pierce Brosnan as Giacinta "Jinx" Johnson.
Halle Berry said she wasn't sure if this was the "right thing" that made James Bond a woman. (Daniele Venturelli/Wireimage Photography | Getty Images)
Former "Bond" girl Eva Green believes the new 007' should be a man, he asks women to recast
The idea of a woman, James Bond, has been a hot issue in Hollywood for nearly a decade. In 2017, Berry similarly refuted a woman's role as a bond in favor of a more original role.
"I hope[women]are strong, but I don't know if Bond should be a woman," Berry said. "I mean, this series is immersed in history, the story of Ian Fleming. I don't think you can turn the bond into a woman."
She added: "We could create a new Bond character, it's a woman and give her a new name based on that theory, but I don't know if Bond should be a woman."
Halle Berry previously played the role of Jinx in the 2002 film Die Ane Aday. (Photo by Franziska Krug/Getty Images)
Berry isn't the only former Bond girl who questioned the idea of gender defeating James Bond over the years. In 2019, "Love My Spy" actress Valerie Leon exploded the idea that the character always succeeds as a man.
Leon said: "He's a fantasy. So many men want to be Bond, women want to be with Bond. How can people fantasize about a woman as a Bond? Men don't go find a woman as a killer or an assassin."
In 2024, British actress Gemma Arterton starred in 2008's "Sosure Quantum".
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“Isn’t James Bond, a woman, played by men like Mary Poppins?” she said. “What they’re talking about is, but I think people will find it outrageous.”
There was some discussion about whether the future James Bond should be played by a woman in the future. (Greg Williams/Eon Productions via Get Toprips)
James Bond’s latest iteration is played by British actor Daniel Craig in the 2021 film No Time to Die. Although Amazon MGM Studios recently reached a deal to control the creative rights of the 007 character, there are no announcements about the future of the franchise.
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