There has been a lot of speculation on who will be the next
James Bond and whether or not it could or should be a black male. I believe
that the perfect actor to play the next James Bond would be Idris Elba. I
believe that the idea of a James Bond actor being black is of no relevance to
the character (I mean are they setting the moves in 1950’s or 2016). The idea
that this could be a problem amuses me because if I was to point out an idea
that was troubling to the James Bond series, I would most likely talk about the
character of James Bond’s relationships with women (he often hits them, like
all the time, like every movie). If you were to watch an older James Bond movie
you would be surprised and probably amused by the issues that are being dealt
with (German villains, who does that anymore?) and this is the true problem
changing people’s childhood and there first conceptions. James Bond is a relic
of the past and only reflects the idea of a ‘gentleman’ not what his ethnic background
is. Ian Fleming’s James Bond is a reflection of the past (before Facebook) but
cannot be treated as such. Time passes and the ideas which hold a character
should change or risk being part of the history books.
The problem is trying to fit what fans expect out of the character and also updating him for new eras. This has happened several times through his history. However in Hollywood we have seen time after time people hesitant to inclusion of race, finding all manner of different excuses, it comes down to a structural bias and inferential racism built in society. They way to move forward, I believe is just change stuff, people will react negatively but over time those voices will be lost.
ReplyDeleteI would have to agree with Matthew Allan, in historical context the character James Bond has given the audience a perception of a white male. Over time time we have accepted this as normal, the status quo. Take for Example Michael B. Jordan playing Johnny Storm! Marvel fans were not impressed. Michael B. Jordan is a great actor but through no fault of his own created a moral panic which shifted the movie reviews in the opposite direction of box office success.
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