It’s official: we have a new 007, and she is making history as the first Black woman to take up the mantle in the James Bond universe. As had leaked last year but has now been confirmed, Lashana Lynch will be playing the new 007 in No Time to Die. She will be taking over for Daniel Craig’s Bond in his absence from MI6. It makes for a historic moment in one of cinema’s most enduring franchises.
The news was confirmed in a recent interview, even though it had been all but confirmed up to this point. In the profile, it is revealed that Lashana Lynch, known for her role in Captain Marvel, will indeed be the ” first ever female 007.” But to be clear, this does not mean that her character, Nomi, will be the new James Bond. No Time to Die will open with Bond in retirement. The interview piece clarifies that Nomi is the “secret agent who inherits the 007 title while Bond himself is in exile.”
Even so, this is a huge moment in the franchise. The news originally leaked online last April. At the time, it was met with a great deal of backlash and vitriol online. Speaking to that, Lashana Lynch feels the same thing would have happened to any other Black actress who took on the role. For her, it is about being part of a larger conversation.
“I am one Black woman, if it were another Black woman cast in the role, it would have been the same conversation, she would have got the same attacks, the same abuse. I just have to remind myself that the conversation is happening and that I’m a part of something that will be very, very revolutionary.”
No Time to Die will pick up several years after the events of Spectre. Bond is pulled back into active service by his pal Felix, once again played by Jeffrey Wright, which puts him on a path toward a deadly new villain named Safin, played by Rami Malek. We’ve seen a bit of interaction between Nomi and Bond in the trailers and the two will, it seems, be challenging one another a bit. Lashana Lynch, speaking further, explained that she wanted to inject some truth into the character.
“I didn’t want to waste an opportunity when it came to what Nomi might represent. I searched for at least one moment in the script where Black audience members would nod their heads, tutting at the reality but glad to see their real life represented. In every project I am part of, no matter the budget or genre, the Black experience that I’m presenting needs to be 100 percent authentic.”
The movie is directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga. It was originally supposed to arrive this year but has since been delayed several times as the situation with movie theaters remains uncertain. No Time to Die is currently set to arrive in theaters on April 2, 2021. This news comes to us via Harper’s Bazaar.
