2 days Ago By HuffPost UK
Dame Helen Mirren has admitted that the “profound sexism” of the James Bond franchise put her off enjoying the series. The Oscar winner is currently on the promo trail for her new series MobLand, in which she appears opposite former 007 Pierce Brosnan , with whom she’s set to reunite later in the year for the Netflix adaptation of Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club . Speaking to The Standard during a recent interview, Dame Helen was asked if she has any feelings about the recent behind-the-scenes changes at James Bond , but claimed that she was “never a great ward” of the British spy saga.
“The whole series of James Bond, it was not my thing,” she explained. “It really wasn’t. “I never liked James Bond.
I never liked the way women were [portrayed] in James Bond.” Ruling out the suggestion of a female James Bond in a future film, she continued: “The whole concept of James Bond is drenched and born out of profound sexism. “Women have always been a major and incredibly important part of the Secret Service, they always have been.
And very brave. “If you hear about what women did in the French Resistance, they’re amazingly, unbelievably courageous. So I would tell real stories about extraordinary women who’ve worked in that world.
” She did, however, heap praise on both Pierce and his successor in the franchise, Daniel Craig , describing the former as “one of the nicest people you’ll ever have the pleasure to work with” and the latter as “a very lovely gracious person”. In 2015, Daniel reflected on some of Bond’s problematic history, telling Esquire : “ Hopefully, my Bond is not as sexist and misogynistic as [earlier incarnations]. “The world has changed.
I am certainly not that person. But he is, and so what does that mean? In the lead-up to No Time To Die’s release, producer Barbara Broccoli said in 2019 that “ the Me Too movement has had a huge impact – rightfully, thankfully – on society, and these films should reflect that, as everything we do should”. Phoebe Waller-Bridge , who co-wrote the film, also told Deadline : “ There’s been a lot of talk about whether or not [the Bond franchise] is relevant now because of who he is and the way he treats women.
“I think that’s bollocks. I think he’s absolutely relevant now. It has just got to grow.
“It has just got to evolve, and the important thing is that the film treats the women properly.” She added: ”[The character] doesn’t have to [treat women a certain way]. He needs to be true to this character.
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